Authentication Tags and Systems for Golf Clubs

ABSTRACT

A golf club comprises a club head having a hosel, a shaft disposed within the hosel, a ferrule disposed about the shaft at a coupling between the shaft and the hosel, and a tagging device coupled to the ferrule. The tagging device can be at least partially disposed within the ferrule, and the tagging device can be a wireless communication device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/094,029 filed Apr. 8, 2016 and publishedas U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0296810 A1, which claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/145,696, filedApr. 10, 2015, by Ross Mandel, et al. and entitled “Authentication Tagsand Systems for Golf Clubs,” each of which applications is incorporatedherein by reference as if produced in its entirety

BACKGROUND

The global supply chain enables goods to be manufactured anywhere in theworld and then transported to a distant market for sale. The businessincentive to minimize manufacturing and transportation costs associatedwith an object results in items being manufactured in low-costmanufacturing facilities around the globe and then shipped to theirfinal markets that are often half the world away. The lengthening of thesupply chain from near the market to the other side of the world for avast majority of items has resulted in long complex supply chains thatspan the globe for nearly every item that is sold in a globalmarketplace.

The near ubiquity of long, complex supply chains affords criminalsmultiple opportunities to introduce counterfeit products into the supplychains. Counterfeit products can be made to look identical to theircloned products, making it difficult if not impossible for a consumer toidentify a counterfeit item either before or after purchase. Similarly,non-counterfeit specialists within the supply chains for a product mayfind it impossible to identify counterfeit products merely by looking atthem. Thus, counterfeit specialists and strict processes and proceduresmust be employed at great expense to combat the intrusion of counterfeitproducts into a supply chain.

Inventory tracking systems based upon automated identification and datacapture (“AIDC”) technologies such as magnetic stripes, bar codes andradio frequency identification (“RFID”) technologies are known in theart. Inventory tracking systems are used primarily to manage inventorywithin defined segments of a supply chain that exists from the point ofmanufacture to the point of sale (“POS”). A single inventory trackingand management system does not exist throughout the entirety of thissupply chain. Instead, multiple inventory tracking and inventorymanagement systems exist within this supply chain, with each systemoperating within a limited segment of the overall supply chain.Inventory management systems may be used to detect potential counterfeitproducts that exist within a single segment of the supply chain (forexample, when multiple items with the same unique serial number exist inthe same supply chain segment simultaneously), but they are not used todetect counterfeit products that exist between supply chains or supplychain segments. Inventory management systems also do not interrogate theauthenticity of objects within their supply chain, and these systemshave limited to no interactions with other systems that extend beyondtheir segment of the supply chain. Thus, while inventory managementsystems track an object during a specific portion of its life, they donot track the object either before or after that portion of its life,and they do not provide more than rudimentary capabilities to detectcounterfeit products. Inventory management systems do not provide forownership information as the owner of an object may not be the same asthe owner of the supply chain in which an object finds itself.Furthermore, inventory tracking systems are targeted at industrial usersand are not generally available to consumers.

Pedigree systems based upon either AIDC technologies or paper-basedsystems are known in the art. Pedigree systems provide a proof ofchain-of-custody of an object, but they are unable to be used forinventory management or inventory tracking. Pedigree systems do notprovide for item authentication. Instead, they provide for informationauthentication. Pedigrees may be generated for counterfeit items and fornon-existent items since information only is being authenticated.Pedigree systems work based on the trust that the supply chain isphysically secure and the trust that the actors within the supply chainare trustworthy. Pedigree systems do not provide chain-of-custodyinformation for items traveling through supply chains that do notparticipate in the pedigree system. Further, pedigree systems do notprovide for counterfeit product detection based upon global information,such as the duplication of an item identifier. Furthermore, pedigreesystems do not provide for ownership information as the owner of an itemis not always the entity in possession of the item, particularly insupply chains prior to the purchase by the end user. Pedigree systemsare typically designed for the manufacturing, distribution and retailentities (including hospitals and pharmacies) involved with a product.Consumers are not the intended users of pedigree systems.

Counterfeit products have an impact on both the finances and thereputation of the victim manufacturers since the counterfeit productssteal sales away from the victim manufacturer and are often of inferiorquality to the authentic product. Distributors and retailers selling orhandling counterfeit products may be similarly impacted and may haveother legal liabilities incurred by their selling of counterfeitproducts. Consumers are impacted financially as well as experientiallysince the counterfeit product robs the consumer of the performance andcapabilities of the authentic products. Inventory management andpedigree systems do not protect the consumer from counterfeit productsthat enter the primary supply channels or come through secondarychannels or direct to the consumer.

The rise of social media and electronic auction sites has allowedcriminals to market counterfeit products direct to consumers; thereby,bypassing the inventory management and pedigree systems utilized withinthe global supply chains. Individuals utilize these same media to selltheir used or previously owned items which may or may not becounterfeit. When buying products from a reputable retailer, a consumerhas confidence that they are purchasing an authentic product. Whenbuying from another individual or over social media, such as anelectronic auction site, a consumer has limited confidence in theauthenticity of a product. Overt authenticity mechanisms such asholograms and bar codes are easily counterfeited along with the productsthemselves. And, for products bought used or pre-owned, the purchaserhas limited confidence that the product is owned by the seller asopposed to being a lost or stolen item.

SUMMARY

The present invention pertains to the field of authentication systems,and more particularly to a system and method for authenticating itemsand managing the authenticity, history, and ownership of items overtime.

In an embodiment, a golf club comprises a club head having a hosel, ashaft disposed within the hosel, a ferrule disposed about the shaft at acoupling between the shaft and the hosel, and a tagging device coupledto the ferrule. The tagging device can be at least partially disposedwithin the ferrule, and the tagging device can be a wirelesscommunication device. The tagging device may comprise an RFID tag, a NFCdevice, a Bluetooth device, or a WiFi enabled device. The ferrule caninclude a cavity or depression, and the tagging device can be disposedwithin the cavity or depression. The golf club can also include a fillermaterial, and the filler material can be configured to retain thetagging device within the cavity. The golf club can also include aferrite shielding material disposed between the tagging device and theshaft. The shaft can be formed form a metallic material, and the ferrulecan be formed form a polymeric material.

In an embodiment, a system for authenticating and managing the ownershipof a golf club comprises a golf club having a ferrule and a taggingdevice comprising tagging device data coupled to the ferrule, an iteminformation system receiving the tagging device data and associated itemdata and storing the tagging device data and the item data, an ownerregistration and transfer system receiving owner registration data andownership change requests and storing the ownership history, and anauthentication system receiving authentication requests and generating aresponse based upon the information stored in the system or a connectedsystem. The tagging device can comprise a linear bar code or a QR code,and the linear bar code or QR code can be visible from an exterior ofthe ferrule. The tagging device can comprise an RFID device, and theRFID device can be embedded within the ferrule. The tagging device maycomprise an NFC compatible device, and the NFC device can be embeddedwithin the ferrule. The tagging device may comprise a Bluetooth enableddevice, and the Bluetooth device may be embedded within the ferrule. Thetagging device can comprise an optically readable pattern. The taggingdevice can comprise a WiFi enabled device. The item information systemcan also receive data and information related to the golf club and storethe information for use by one or more of the item information system,the owner registration and transfer system, or the authenticationsystem. The data and information related to the golf club can compriseinformation from an authentication request, tagging device read eventdata, authentication request event data, item information system eventdata, owner registration and transfer event data, authentication systemevent data, ownership event data, updated owner data, productregistration data, and/or manufacturer event data. The ownerregistration and transfer system may also provide product registrationinformation to an item manufacturer or item registration service. Thesystem can also include a key management system, and the authenticationsystem can communicate with the key management system. The keymanagement system can comprise a hardware security module (HSM), and theHSM can store one or more authentication keys. The authentication systemcan be configured to generate a response to the authentication requestby accessing at least one authentication key in the key managementsystem. The owner registration and transfer system may also include anowner registration system receiving one or more requests, owner data,and owner authentication to establish the current owner of the item, anowner release system receiving one or more requests, current owner data,and current owner authentication to remove the current owner of theitem, an owner transfer system receiving one or more requests, currentowner data, second owner data, current owner authentication, and secondowner authentication to establish the second owner as the current ownerof the item, and an owner history system that records the requests andactivities regarding the ownership of the item. The system can alsoinclude a notification system generating a notification message to oneor more users involved in an ownership request. The system can alsoinclude a notification system generating a notification message to oneor more entities after a change in the current ownership of an item. Thesystem can also include an advertisement server, and at least one of theitem information system, the owner registration and transfer system, orthe authentication system can also be configured to supply informationto the advertisement server. At least one of the item informationsystem, the owner registration and transfer system, or theauthentication system can be configured to receive an advertisement or acoupon from the ad server.

In an embodiment, a method for authenticating an item comprises storingauthentication information, tagging device data, and item dataassociated with a tagging device in a server, wherein the tagging deviceis coupled to a ferrule of a golf club, receiving tagging device dataand authentication information from the tagging device coupled to theferrule, receiving the tagging device data and the authenticationinformation from the server, correlating the tagging device data and theauthentication information in the server with the tagging device dataand the authentication information from the tagging device, andgenerating confirmation data when the tagging device data andauthentication information are correlated. The method can also includecommissioning the tagging device, and inserting the authenticationinformation, the tagging device data, and the item data into the taggingdevice. The method can also include generating one or more notificationmessages indicating at least the authentication request and confirmationdata and sending the one or more messages to one or more entities. Oneof the entities can be the registered owner of the golf club. The methodcan also include receiving the item data from server. Receiving thetagging device data and the authentication information from a taggingdevice and from the server can be performed by a mobile tag readingdevice. The mobile tag reading device can be a mobile phone. The methodcan also include receiving an ad from an ad server in response to thecorrelating. The ad can be based on a type of the item. The ad can bebased on demographic data associated with an owner of the item. Themethod can also include generating a certificate of authenticity whenthe tagging device data and authentication information are correlated.The method can also include receiving a coupon from a coupon server inresponse to the correlating. The coupon can be based on a type of theitem, demographic data associated with one or more owners of the item, ausage history of a reading device, a location of the reading device, orany combination thereof.

In an embodiment, a golf club comprises a club head, wherein the clubhead comprises a hosel, a shaft disposed within the hosel, and a taggingdevice coupled to the hosel. The tagging device can be at leastpartially disposed within the hosel. The tagging device can comprises awireless communication device. The tagging device can comprises an RFIDtag, a NFC device, a Bluetooth device, or a WiFi enabled device. Thehosel can comprises a cavity or depression, and the tagging device canbe disposed within the cavity or depression. The golf club can alsoinclude a filler material that can be configured to retain the taggingdevice within the cavity. The golf club can also include a ferriteshielding material disposed adjacent to the tagging device. The golfclub can also include a ferrule disposed at a coupling between the shaftand the hosel. A second tagging device can be coupled to the ferrulewhen one is present.

These and other features will be more clearly understood from thefollowing detailed description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a system for item authentication and ownership management ofan object throughout its lifetime in accordance with an exemplaryembodiment.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams of a tamper evident tagging device inaccordance with exemplary embodiments.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic illustrations of a plurality of taggingdevices associated with an item in accordance with exemplaryembodiments.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are schematic illustrations of a golf club according toan embodiment.

FIGS. 5A-5C are schematic illustrations of embodiments of a taggingdevice.

FIGS. 6A-6D are schematic illustrations of tagging devices coupled to aferrule and/or a hosel of a golf club according to an embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a system of a reading deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a method for providing tag commissioning inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a method for authenticating a tagging device inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a messaging diagram illustrating another method forauthenticating a tagging device in accordance with an exemplaryembodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of another method for authenticating a taggingdevice in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of still another method for authenticating atagging device in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a method for establishing ownership of anobject in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a method for relinquishing ownership of anobject in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a method for transferring ownership of anobject in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a method for generating a secondary taggingdevice in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 17 is an illustration of an exemplary embodiment of a certificateof authenticity.

FIG. 18 is an illustration of a mobile communication device according toan exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram of a mobile communication device according toan exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 20A and 20B are block diagrams of software architecture for amobile communication device according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary computer system suitable forimplementing several an exemplary embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods for managingthe authenticity of and information about an item throughout itslifetime, and particularly to the prevention of and early detection ofcounterfeit items. The systems and methods identify an item, providemultiple mechanisms to authenticate the identity of the item, providefor an owner of the item to manage the information available about anitem at one or more servers accessible over a communication network,provide for those servers to report transactions related to an item backto the item's owner or some other entity, and provides services to thirdparties such as advertisements, coupons, and notifications to users andanonymized data aggregation.

A system is disclosed herein that can be used by consumers and by thevarious entities in the global supply chains to verify the authenticityof items throughout each item's lifetime and to verify the owner andownership history of that item. A number of anti-counterfeitingtechnologies have been utilized in products including holograms, colorshifting ink, security graphics, sequential product numbering,on-product marking, invisible printing, watermarks, substrate embeddedmaterials, taggants, and RFID tagging for track and trace. Thesetechnologies have been adopted for both overt and covert mechanisms, andthey have been deployed such that consumers can utilize theanti-counterfeiting mechanism directly (overt technologies) or requirespecialized services from a certified specialist (covert technologies).Only with the use of a certified specialist to investigate the coverttechnologies might the owner or some other entity such as the officialmanufacturer gain knowledge about the current situation of the item.

The use of AIDC technologies, such as RFID systems and bar code systems,or other wireless communication devices, such as a Bluetooth, WiFi, orZigbee device, allows for improved supply chain management through trackand trace capabilities and provide opportunities for consumers toauthenticate an item, such as by reading a signed certificate from thememory of an RFID tag. In order to protect consumers, manufacturers, andall parties within a supply chain, from counterfeits and the resale oflost or stolen items, a system can be used that allows for all entitiesthat come in contact with an item, especially consumers, to verify theauthenticity of that item directly and to verify the ownership of thatitem to ensure that it is not lost or stolen even if it is authentic.

The disclosed system incorporates a tagging device that is affixed to anitem and is used to uniquely identify and authenticate the item to whichit is affixed. The tagging device may be used also to determine thelocation of the device. Reading device or tag communication device isused to retrieve information from the tagging device. The reading devicemay have multiple communications with the tagging device during anauthentication process. The reading device may communicate with a localauthentication system, such as an application executing on the readingdevice. The local authentication system communicates with anauthentication server over a communication network. Either the readingdevice or the authentication system may use the one or morecommunications with the tagging device either alone or in conjunctionwith additional information to determine the location of the taggingdevice. Alternatively, the tagging device, reading device or theauthentication system may determine the location of the reading device.The local authentication system may obtain data or information from theserver that is used to authenticate the object. The server may obtaindata or information from the local authentication system regarding thetagging device, the reading device, the local authentication system andother associated information such as location, user, and network andother communication information. The server provides for the declarationof an owner of the object and for the transfer of ownership of theobject. The current owner of an item may limit access to the informationand services available on the server and related to that item. An ownermay provide credentials to the local authentication system that thenacts as a proxy for the owner in interactions with the server. An ownermay also access the server directly. The server maintains information ontransactions involving an item and may report transaction information tothe owner or other entity. The owner may add and/or modify the iteminformation in the server. The ownership pedigree and item transactioninformation may serve as the basis for secondary authenticationmechanisms for the object.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system 100 for authenticating itemsand managing the ownership of items throughout their lifetimes inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment. System 100 comprises one ormore tagged items 110 comprising a tag 112 associated with an item 111,a reading device 120, which may comprise a local authenticationapplication 122, an authentication and management system 140, and anoptional key server 190. The components of the system may communicatedirectly or indirectly over one or more wired or wireless communicationprotocols and/or over a network 195. System 100 allows items to beauthenticated using multiple mechanisms and the ownership history of theitems to be maintained and managed by the owner(s) of the itemthroughout its lifetime. One or more components of the system 100 can beimplemented in hardware and/or software, which can include one or moresoftware systems operating on one or more servers or computers. Serversand computers are described in more detail below.

Each component of the system 100 may communicate directly or through oneor more intervening systems and components including wired and/orwireless connections. In an embodiment, the components of the system 100may be communicatively coupled using a public communication network, aprivate communication network, or a combination thereof. Variouscomponents of the system may communicate over one or more wireless linksor channels, which may or may not include communications through thenetwork 195. The wireless communication couplings may occur over a shortrange communication protocol such as WiFi, Bluetooth, Near FieldCommunication (“NFC”), or the like. In some embodiments, one or morecomponents of the system may communicate over the network 195 through awireless communication protocol such as a code division multiple access(“CDMA”) wireless protocol, a global system for mobile communications(“GSM”) wireless protocol, a long term evolution (“LTE”) wirelessprotocol, a worldwide interoperability for microwave access (“WiMAX”)wireless protocol, or another wireless communication protocol.

System 100 includes one or more tagged items 110. A tagged itemgenerally comprises an item 111 that is to be authenticated and managedand a tagging device 112 associated with the item 111. The taggingdevice 112 may be any device that allows for the identification,verification, and/or authentication of the item 111. In an embodiment,the tagging device 112 is a physical device. In an embodiment, thetagging device 112 may comprise human readable printed date, a physicallabel, and/or an active or passive machine readable device. In anembodiment, the tagging device may be an optically readable pattern thatis composed of numbers, letters, and/or symbols. The optically readablepattern may be printed directly on the item, and/or the opticallyreadable pattern may be printed on an adhesive label that is affixed tothe item. The optically readable pattern may be etched into the item. Inan embodiment, the tagging device 112 may be an AIDC tagging device,such as a linear bar code with encoded data, a multidimensional bar codesuch as a QR code with encoded data, an RFID tag that stores at least anidentifier, an RFID tag with cryptographic functionality, a Near FieldCommunication NFC tag (a type of RFID tag), an active communicationdevice such as a Bluetooth device (e.g., a Bluetooth Low Energy (“BLE”)device), a WiFi enabled device, or a combination of multiple taggingdevices. Print markings, such as color barcodes or encoded colorsequences that may be interpreted by a system designed to decode themarkings, may also be used as a tagging device 112. In an embodiment, anRFID tag containing cryptographic functionality, such as the NXP DESFiretag or the Mifare Ultralight C tag, a QR code encoding at least anidentifier and cryptographically signed hash, or both are used as thetagging device 112 for an item 111. While described in the context of asingle tagging device 112 being associated with an item 111, a taggeditem 110 may comprise one or more tagging devices 112. Redundancy withdifferent tagging technologies provides for a robust system design. Whenmultiple tagging devices are utilized, a single tagging device may beused for item authentication and ownership management. Additionally, themultiple tagging devices may be used to authenticate each other inaddition to providing for item authentication when a plurality oftagging devices (e.g., less than all the tagging devices, the totalityof the tagging devices, etc.) are authenticated.

In general, the tagging device 112 may be coupled, affixed, embedded, orotherwise attached to the item 111. As used herein, the terms couple,affix, embed, attach, or any other like term describing an interactionbetween elements is not meant to limit the interaction to directinteraction between the elements or limit the interaction to physicalinteraction between the elements and may also include indirect ornon-physical interaction between the elements described (e.g.,associated with through either an electronic connection, proximity, orother physical or logical connection with an item). While directlyaffixing or otherwise physically attaching the tagging device 112 to theitem 111 may provide an improved degree of security, the tagging device112 may also be associated with the item 111 while not being directlyaffixed to the item 111. For example, the tagging device 112 may becoupled either directly or indirectly to the item when it is includedwith an item 111 in the item's packaging, within paperwork accompanyingthe item 111, or the like.

In some embodiments, the tagging device 112 may comprise a computerprogram or application that is associated with the item 111. Forexample, the purchaser of an item may download a tagging device programto their computing device (e.g., a mobile device). The purchaser mayenter information unique to the purchased item 110, such as a serialnumber or unique item identifier. In some embodiments, the taggingdevice program may be downloaded and the item specific informationfilled in in response to scanning a bar code, QR code, or the like on apiece of paper packaged with the item 110. In some embodiments, thetagging device may comprise a digital presentation, and the readingdevice may be able to read the tagging device from a digital source suchas a monitor, tablet, computer screen, or the like. This may be usefulfor digitally purchased products. The tagging device program maycomprise the same or similar information, albeit in electronicallystored form, as the other tagging devices described herein. The taggingdevice program, being a tagging device 112, may utilize a camera orother optical input device to take a picture or movie of the item 110.The tagging device program may analyze the optical feed to identifycharacteristics such as lettering, length, width, and other visualcharacteristics. The tagging device program may send this information tothe authentication and management system 140 or a component thereof(e.g., the authentication system 170), and the authentication andmanagement system 140 may inform the tagging device program as to thelikelihood of the item 110 being authentic. Various physicalcharacteristics or identifiers such as dings, dents, scratches, or thelike may be captured by the tagging device program to allow for visuallyidentifiable features to be updated through the life of the item 110.These updates may allow for unique features to be captured and used foridentification as the appearance of an item 110 is altered over itslifetime.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tagging device 112 can comprise data stored invarious forms. Each tagging device 112 comprises uniquely codedidentifying data (“UID”) 113, such as a unique Electronic Product Code(“EPC”), encoded within the tagging device 112. Depending on thewritable memory storage capacity of the tagging device 112, additionaldata may also be included. In an embodiment, the tagging device 112 mayalso comprise item information 114 such as the type, category,manufacturer, model number, serial number, manufacturing date, or thelike of the item 111. In an embodiment, the tagging device 112 may alsocomprise a cryptographic signature 116 over data related to the item,and such data may or may not be stored on or in the tagging device. Thetagging device 112 may also comprise a timestamp, date information,and/or version information pertaining to when the cryptographic signedsignature 116 was generated. Tagging devices 112 comprisingcryptographic functionality such as RFID tags, including NFC tags, andBluetooth devices, may have a cryptographic key 115 such as a secret keywritten into the tagging device 112. The secret key may be writtenduring the commissioning process. Tagging devices 112 such as QR codes,linear bar codes, and RFID tags with sufficient writable memory maycomprise one or more cryptographically generated signatures 116 andoptional corresponding signature dates or version numbers. Thecryptographic signature 116 may be obtained using any number ofavailable digital signature algorithms such as a public key cipher likeRSA, a keyed hash function, a hash function whose result is signed by apublic key cipher, or a symmetric key cipher such as AES. Thecryptographic signature can be written to the memory of the taggingdevice or included in the data encoded by the encoding mechanism of thedevice (such as the black and white lines in a linear bar code). Any ofthe data stored on the tagging device 112 may be stored as unencryptedor encrypted data, and/or used in the creation of a data structure onthe tagging device 112.

In an embodiment, attaching, equivalently affixing, a tagging device 112to an item can include physically attaching the tagging device 112 to anitem 111 such as by an adhesive label, by riveting the tagging device112 to the item 111, by bolting the tagging device 112 to the item 111,and by other physical attachments such that the removal of the taggingdevice 112 from the item 111 requires specialized tools or the breakingor damaging of the item 111. Attaching a tagging device 112 to an item111 may include physically attaching the tagging device 112 to the item111 so that the removal of the tagging device 112 leaves evidence thatthe tagging device 112 was removed (such as by using a tamper evidentadhesive). Attaching a tagging device 112 to an item 111 may furtherinclude physically embedding the tagging device 112 within the item 111such that the item 111 must be damaged or destroyed in order to removethe tagging device 112. In some embodiment, attaching a tagging device112 to an item 111 may include printing the tagging device 112, such asa bar code, QR code, or the like, directly onto the item 111. Attachinga tagging device 112 to an item 111 may also include physically etchingthe item 111 with the tagging device 112, for example by laser etching aQR code into the item 111.

An embodiment of the tagging device 112 is provided with reference toFIG. 2A and 2B. As shown in FIG. 2A, the tagging device may be disposedor embedded within a packaging material 202. The packaging material maycomprise any material allowing the tagging device to be read withoutbeing obscured by a suitable communication medium. For example, when thetag comprises an RFID device or NFC enabled device, the packagingmaterial may comprise a non-metallic material that allows radiofrequency waves or communications to communicate between the taggingdevice 112 and a reader device adjacent to or within communication rangeof the tagging device in the packaging material 202. Similarly, for abarcode or QR code or other tagging device requiring line-of-sightbetween the tagging device and the reading device such as aninfrared-based tagging device, the packaging material may be translucentto allow a reader to communicate with or read the tagging device 112,such as allowing the reader to optically see the pattern of a QR code.The packaging material 202 may be coupled to a tamper resistant adhesive204 such as a permanent, strong adhesive (e.g., to permanently affix thetagging device 112 to the item, etc.) or a peel-away layer. The tamperresistant adhesive may be configured to physically leave identifyingdata or tamper evidence if an attempt to remove the tagging deviceand/or packaging material is made.

In some embodiments, the tamper resistant adhesive 204 may beelectrically conductive such that an attempt to remove the taggingdevice 112 and/or packaging material 202 changes the electricalproperties of the adhesive 204 in a manner that is detectable by thetagging device 112 or the reader in communication with the taggingdevice 112. For example, an electrically conductive adhesive used for apassive RFID tag may be designed to be connected directly to metal wherethe metal is electrically connected and form a portion of the taggingdevice's antenna. Removing the tagging device from the metal may alterthe adhesive and change the electrical properties of the taggingdevice's response signal. In some embodiments, the removal may bedetected and logged in the memory (e.g., as a special bit). The memorymay be sent during normal communications with a reader, for example,when the tagging device comprises a BLE or other powered device, whichmay be an effective manner of electronically signaling that tamperinghas occurred. In this manner, any potential tampering with an item maybe detected as well as an attempt to re-associate the tagging device 112with a new item.

FIG. 2B illustrates a similar tamper resistant tagging device 112. Inthis embodiment, the tagging device forms a layer that is coupled to alayer of packaging material 202. The packaging material is coupled tothe tamper resistant adhesive 204 to indicate if an attempt to remove orotherwise alter the tagging device 112 is made. In the embodiment ofFIG. 2B, the tag may be read directly since it is not embedded withinthe packaging material, which may provide a broader range of compoundsthat can be used for the packaging and/or tamper resistant materials.

Returning to FIG. 1, the reading device 120 is configured to communicatewith and obtain information such as the UID from the tagging device 112.In an embodiment, the reading device 120 comprises a tag communicationdevice 121 that establishes a communication sequence with the taggingdevice in order to validate and/or obtain the tagging deviceinformation. For example, an RFID tag containing cryptographicfunctionality may utilize a sequence of communications in order toexecute that cryptographic functionality. In some embodiments, thecryptographic functionality can be obtained in a single reading of thetagging device, such as when the tagging device 112 comprises a QR codeor the tagging device 112 communicates a self-signed message. Variousdevices can be used as the reading device 120 including, but not limitedto, a bar code scanner, an RFID reader, an NFC enabled device, anoptical recognition system, an infrared reader, or any combinationthereof. The reading device 120 may allow a tagging device to be read inone or more forms such as a tagging device affixed to an item, a visualrepresentation of the tagging device (e.g., a digital image of a QRcode, bar code, or the like), or the like. In an embodiment, a mobiledevice such as a mobile phone may serve as the reading device, whereinthe mobile device may have an optical receiver (e.g., a camera, etc.) orany other electronic communication and reading systems. In anembodiment, the reading device 120 may comprise an indication of wherethe tagging device 112 should be placed or positioned to allow thetagging device to be read. In some embodiments, the indication may bepresented on a display of the reading device 120. For example, a symbolmay be displayed on the display of a mobile device indicating how thetagging device 112 should be aligned relative to the mobile device forthe tagging device 112 to be properly read.

The reading device 120 may communicate with an authentication system170, which may be a local authentication system 122 and/or a serverbased authentication system 170. The local authentication system 122 maybe an application that executes on the reading device 120. The localauthentication system 122 can communicate with the authentication system170 to assist in the authentication process based upon the data andother information obtained from the tagging device 112 and one or morereading devices. The use of a local authentication system 122 mayprovide for automated data retrieval and communication with theauthentication server 170. A local authentication system 122 isdescribed in more detail herein.

When a server based authentication system 170 is used, the readingdevice 120 may serve as an input device for the authentication system170. The input device may comprise an automated reading device or amanual entry system that communicates with the authentication server 170and allows for the input of information to the authentication server170. This information may be input prior to the authentication processbeginning or may be input as part of the authentication process. Theinput device may be used to allow for manual entry and validation of thetagging device 112, which may be useful when an automated reading device120 is not available.

As shown in FIG. 1, the authentication and management system 140 maycomprise an item information system 150, an owner registration andtransfer system 160, an authentication system 170, and/or a notificationsystem 180. The item information system 150 receives tagging device data151 including the UID 113 of the tagging device 112, and optionally theassociated item data 152, any additional item identifier or identifiers153, and location data 154. The information can be received from one ormore reading devices 120. In some embodiments, the information iscreated by a commissioning device or system at the time of the creationof the tagging device 112, and the information can be received directlyfrom the commissioning device rather than from the tagging device 112.The item information system 150 is in communication with the remainingportions of the system 100 and stores the tagging device data 151 andthe optional item data 152 and/or item identifier(s) 153 for use withthe system 100.

In an embodiment, the tagging device data 151 and/or the item data 152can be provided by an owner of the item 111 or by a third party (e.g., amanufacturer, dealer, repair provider, etc.). Various information aboutthe item can be included in the item data 152 including informationabout the item 111 in its original condition (e.g., serial number, make,model, manufacturing date, etc.), information about maintenance (e.g., amaintenance history), and various information about damage, theft, andthe like. The information may be provided by the owner and/or directlyfrom third parties, which may or may not be the third partiesresponsible for the maintenance or reporting about the item. Forexample, a maintenance provider may provide information about workperformed on the item directly to the system 100 for updating the itemdata 152. As another example, a law enforcement agency may provideinformation directly to the system 100 to update the item data 152 withreports of stolen items, recovered items, or the like. In someembodiments, the item information system 150 may be configured toactively poll the owner and/or various third party providers to obtainupdates to the item data 152. This may allow the information stored inthe item information system to be modified by the owner of the item.

The item history data 155 can store information related to the item. Theinformation can be received from other data stores in the iteminformation system 150, the owner registration and transfer system 160,the authentication system 170, and/or the notification system 180.Various data can be stored in the item history data 155 such dataassociated with an authentication request, a tag read, a query or accessinto the information system, owner updated information such as picturesof the item, purchase information, product registration information, andadditional information provided by the item manufacturer such as recallnotifications or software update information. In an embodiment, the itemhistory data 155 can include, but it not limited to, data for anauthentication request, tagging device read event data, authenticationrequest event data, item information system event data, ownerregistration and transfer event data, authentication system event data,ownership event data, updated owner data, product registration data,manufacturer event data. The information can be provided to othersystems for use in the authentication process, the ownershipvalidation/transfer process, or any of the other processes describedherein.

The owner registration and transfer system 160 receives ownerregistration data and ownership change requests and stores an ownershiphistory for the item 111. The owner registration and transfer system 160can serve to carry out an ownership change in response to receiving anownership change request. When an item 111 does not have a registeredowner, the owner registration and transfer system 160 allows a possessorof the item 111 to register as the owner of the item 111 based onauthenticating one or more tagging device 112 and/or the item 111. Oncean owner is registered for an item, the owner registration and transfersystem 160 allows a registered owner to release ownership and/ortransfer ownership to a subsequent owner of the item 111. The ownershiptransfer process may be contingent upon authenticating one or moretagging device 112 and/or item 111.

In order to perform its various functions, the owner registration andtransfer system 160 may comprise one or more of an owner registrationsystem 161, an owner release system 162, owner transfer system 163,current owner data 164, and an owner history system 165. The ownerregistration system 161 is configured to receive one or more requests,owner data, and owner authentication information (e.g., from theauthentication system 170) to establish the current owner of the item111. The owner registration system 161 may be used to establish theinitial ownership of the item 111 and/or the ownership of the item 111after the ownership has been released by a previous owner. The ownerregistration system 161 may be configured to receive item authenticationinformation from the authentication system 170, and premise theregistration of the ownership upon verification of this information.This may help reduce the likelihood that a person other than the trueowner or possessor of the item 111 becomes registered as the owner.

The owner release system 162 may be configured to receive one or morerequests to release the ownership of the item 111, the current ownerdata, and the current owner authentication information and use thisinformation to release the current ownership claim to the item 111. Theowner release system 162 may serve to allow a present owner of the itemto release an ownership claim to allow a subsequent owner to register asthe owner of the item. As with the owner registration system 161, theowner release system 162 may be configured to receive itemauthentication information from the authentication system 170 prior toallowing the ownership claim to be released. In some embodiments, theowner release system 162 may allow the ownership claim to be releasedbased only on a verification of the current owner authenticationinformation.

The owner transfer system 163 may be configured to receive one or morerequests from an owner and/or a subsequent purchaser to transfer theownership of the item 111 from the current owner to a subsequent owner.In order to carry out the ownership transfer, the owner transfer system163 may receive the one or more requests, current owner data, secondowner data, current owner authentication information (e.g., from theauthentication system 170), and second owner authentication information(e.g., also from the authentication system 170) to allow the ownershipclaim to be released for the first owner and established for the secondowner. The owner transfer system 163 may be configured to receive itemauthentication information from the authentication system 170 prior toallowing the ownership claim to be released. In an embodiment, the itemauthentication information may be supplied by either the current owneror the second owner, thereby verifying that the item is in thepossession of one of the parties to the transaction. In someembodiments, the owner transfer system 162 may allow the ownership claimto be transferred from the current owner to the second owner based onlyon a verification of the current owner authentication information andthe second owner authentication information.

The current owner data 164 comprises information related to the currentowner of the item 111 when the ownership status is claimed. The ownerhistory system 165 generates the current owner data 164 during theownership management process from the data within the owner registrationand transfer system 160 and provides a pedigree for the item 111. Thepedigree can extend over various time periods, and in an embodiment, canextend from the commissioning of the tagging device 112 to the currentowner of the item 111. The owner history can be updated in response toan ownership status change for the item 111. For example, the currentowner data 164 can be amended to include an ending date for theownership claim, and the data can then be moved by the owner historysystem 165 to the owner history data 166. The ownership registration andtransfer system 160 can also monitor the ownership status and history ofan item 111 and send an alert to the notification system 180 in theevent that an improper transfer request is processed or upon anindication that a counterfeit or fraudulent transaction is occurring.

Within the owner registration and transfer system 160, the ownershipdata and information can be maintained by the various systems in severalforms. In an embodiment, ownership of an item 111 can be maintained as alinked list of owner data structures. Each owner data structure mayinclude information on an owner in the owner pedigree including, but notlimited to, the beginning date of ownership and the ending date ofownership. A current owner of the item 111 would not have an ending dateof ownership in the data structure. When the current owner is unassignedor unclaimed, the owner data structure comprises an indication that theownership belongs to an unassigned owner. In some embodiments, anownership history and the current owner identification are maintained ina database, and the elements of the ownership data structure may betranslated into fields in the database. The current owner of an item maybe determined by identifying the owner whose ending date of ownershiphas not been set. All past owners may be identified as those ownerswhose ending date of ownership has been set to a day less than or equalto the current day in which a query is made.

The authentication system 170 is configured to receive variousauthentication information and requests and generate a response basedupon the information stored in the system authentication and managementsystem 100 or a connected system (e.g., key server 190). Theauthentication information may be stored in various components of thesystem 100 and may include, but is not limited to, passwords,cryptographic keys, cryptographic messages in an authentication messagesequence, and any combination thereof. The authentication system 170 mayserve to receive information from the tagging device 112 and verify thatthe tagging device 112 is the same tagging device that should beassociated with the item 111. The authentication system 170 may alsoserve to authenticate registered users of the system 100. For example,the authentication system may be configured to receive user credentialsand verify the authority of a user to access the system to verify atagging device, request an ownership registration or change, create anew tagging device, or the like. In some embodiments, the authenticationsystem 170 may serve to create the data associated with the taggingdevice 112 such as the UID, a digital signature, a cryptographic key, orany of the other data associated with the tagging device 112. Theauthentication system 170 may also maintain a log of authenticationrequests, attempts, result, and information related to such activitieswhich may be used with the notification system 180.

The authentication system 170 can be used to maintain and manage theauthentication information used in the tagging device 112 and/or item111 verification process. The authentication system 170 storesinformation such as a tagging device identifier, an object identifier,or other object or tagging device information that is associated withthe tagging device 112.

The authentication system 170 and key server 190 may also store one ormore cryptographic keys used during the commissioning process andassociate the keys to the data contained within the tagging devices. Theauthentication system 170 may be used to maintain and manage the publickeys used during the authentication processes and may managecommunications with the key server 190 that protects and manages thesecret and private keys used to authenticate the tagging device 112 andits associated data. When cryptographic functions are used, it ispreferred that the cryptographic keys be maintained at theauthentication system 170 (e.g., in data associated with theauthentication protocol system 171) and/or in the key server 190 thatcommunicates with the authentication system 170. The key server 190 mayrepresent a secure storage facility, and the use of a key server 190 maymitigate the risks associated with distributing keys outside of a secureenvironment. In an embodiment, a dedicated key server 190 may compriseone or more hardware security modules (“HSM”s) that may be used toperform all server side operations involving cryptographic keys such assecret keys and/or private keys. For tagging devices that do not havedata storage or data encoding capabilities, such as RFID tags that canstore only an identifier, a cryptographic key may not be stored in theauthentication system 170 associated with that tagging device 112.

The authentication system 170 may comprise an authentication protocolsystem 171, an authentication attempt log 172, a registered userauthentication system 173, and/or a tagging device creation system 174.The authentication protocol system 171 provides for communication withand verification of the tagging device 112, which may occur directlyand/or through the reading device 120. The communication sequence maycomprise obtaining tagging device data from read only tagging devicessuch as bar codes, QR codes, and the like. When cryptographic taggingdevices are used, the authentication protocol system 171 may assist thereading device 120 in performing a multi-message communication sequencebetween the reading device 120 and the tagging device 112. Thecommunication sequence may comprise sending a series ofchallenge-response requests used to authenticate the tagging device 112and optionally the authentication system 170. The communication sequencemay rely on the cryptographic keys stored in the authentication system170 and/or the key server 190. In an embodiment, the authenticationprocess may comprise a mutual authentication between the authenticationsystem 170 and the tagging device 112.

The registered user authentication system 173 may be used to storeinformation related to registered users of the system 100, validate aregistered user to the system, and create new registered usercredentials. A registered user of the system 100 is a user that hasperformed a registration process to make the user known to theauthentication system and receive access privileges to theauthentication system. During the registration process, a user maysupply identifying information and credentials (e.g., a user ID,password, email, challenge questions, etc.) for future log-in attemptsor authentication attempts to the system.

In an embodiment, the registered users may have different levels ofaccess to the functionality and data of the authentication system 170.For example, a registered user that has paid for access may haveownership privileges that allow the user to register as the owner of anynumber of items. Registered user that has not paid for such premiumaccess may have a limited number of items for which that user may be theregistered owner. Once ownership is established in the maximum number ofallowable items, ownership privileges may be revoked until such time asthe user either pays for premium access or releases ownership of one ormore items.

Upon performing an authentication of the tagging device 112 and/or theuser, an authentication attempt log 172 may be updated with the relevantinformation and data collected during the transaction. For example, theauthentication of the tagging device 112 may generate or supplement alog of the tagging device UID, item data, key identifier, time ofrequest, and the like. Similarly, the attempted authentication of a usermay generate or supplement the authentication attempt log 172 data withthe user ID, device performing the request, time of the request, and thelike. The authentication attempt log 172 may be accessed by othercomponents of the system such as the notification system 180 inperforming various monitoring and fraud prevention checks.

The tagging device creation system 174 may be used to generate a taggingdevice for the item 111, which may occur at the time of commissioning atagging device 112 associated with the item 111 or at a later date toverify authentication of the item 111 at a particular time. For thecommissioning of a tagging device 112, the tagging device creationsystem 174 may generate the information associated with the taggingdevice such as the UID, optionally any known item data, a cryptographickey, a digital signature, and the commissioning time stamp. The data maybe stored in the authentication system 170 for use in validating thetagging device 112. As described below, the tagging device may then becoupled to the item 111, at which point additional data may be providedto the tagging device 112. The information may be communicated back tothe tagging device creation system 174, which may store the additionalinformation.

The tagging device creation system 174 may also receive a request tocreate a new tagging device for the item 111 after the creation of thefirst tagging device 112. The new tagging device can be used to verifythe authenticity of the tagging device 112 and/or the item 111 at thetime that the second tagging device is created. The tagging devicecreation system 174 may receive authentication information for thetagging device 112 and verify the authenticity of the tagging device 112and/or data based on the authentication information. The tagging devicecreation system 174 may then provide a new tagging device containing atleast a portion of the information from the original tagging device aswell as a digital signature that covers some or all of the originalinformation. Alternatively, the new tagging device may contain noportion of the original information retrieved from the authenticatedtagging device. A time stamp representing the time of the creation ofthe second tagging device may also be included in the second taggingdevice. The digital signature and the second time stamp may be used toauthenticate the item 111 as well as authenticating its possession atthe time of creation of the second tagging device.

The certificate generation system 175 may allow a registered user togenerate a second tagging device and/or a certificate of authenticityfor the item once the item is authenticated. The certificate generationsystem 175 may obtain data from the remaining systems and may be invokedwhen the authentication process indicates that an item is authentic. Thecertificate of authenticity may allow a user to validate theauthenticity of an item, for example during a sale. The certificate ofauthenticity may include various item data, ownership data, theauthentication time, and any other details used in the authenticationprocess (e.g., as shown in the exemplary certificate of authenticityshown in FIG. 17 and discussed in more detail herein).

The notification system 180 is configured to generate one or morenotification messages to one or more users or third parties. Thenotifications may comprise routine notification messages to users of thesystem or responses to authentication requests. The notifications mayalso comprise marketing or product information that can be sent to oneor more third parties such as a manufacturer of the item, therebyproviding feedback on the secondary market transaction of the item 111.The notifications may also be in the form of one or more alerts.

In an embodiment, the notification system 180 may comprise one or moreof an owner notification system 181, a third party notification system182, and an alert notification system 183. The owner notification system181 may respond to actions within the system 100 such as anauthentication request passing to the authentication system 170. Theowner notification system 181 may be configured to generate anotification that is sent to an owner when a claim of ownership to theitem is made, when a release of ownership request is made, when a changeof ownership request is made, when an authentication request is made, orupon any number of additional events. The owner notification system 181may also store an owner possession status to allow an owner to report anitem as being lost or stolen. Any subsequent action involving the item111 may then result in an owner notification of the action along withthe information associated with the action such as the user IDassociated with the request, the item information, the time of therequest, the device sending the request, and the like.

The third party notification system 182 may be configured to sendnotifications of the various transactions (e.g., authentications,ownership change requests, etc.) to a third party. It can be difficultfor manufacturers and other third parties to track the resale of theirproducts. The present system allows the resale of a general type ofproduct as well as specific products to be tracked. The information maybe useful to various third parties such as manufacturers, tradeassociations, advertising providers, marking firms, and the like formarketing research. The third party notification system 182 may provideaggregated data and/or data on individual transactions and items to athird party. The third party notification system 182 may automaticallygenerate the notices once the third party data is registered with thesystem.

The alert notification system 183 may be configured to provide one ormore alerts to an owner, a user, and/or a third party. The alerts may begenerated based on various fraud and/or theft prevention indications.For example, when an ownership transfer request is received from anunauthorized user or a user not in possession of the item, an alert maybe sent to the present owner of the item. When an item authenticationrequest fails, which may indicate that the item has been counterfeited,an alert message may be sent to the user requesting the authenticationas well as the item owner, a third party (e.g., the manufacturer),and/or other authorized body, such as the police. When multiple itemauthentication requests arrive for a particular item, and those requestshave specific characteristics, such as arriving within minutes of oneanother from disparate geographic locations that indicate the existenceof two of the same item, an alert message may be sent to the usersrequesting the authentication as well as the item owner and/or themanufacturer or other authorized body. The alert notification system 183may also generate alert messages to the owner of the system 100, or anyother suitable person.

The alert notification system 183 may receive various data from theother systems to generate alert messages indicating the potential forfraud in a transaction, ownership request, or other action of thesystem. In an embodiment, the alert notification system 183 may take anaction based on the data associated with the tagging device 112 and/oritem 111, a positioning input, a visual input, or the like. With respectto the data associated with the tagging device 112 and/or the item 111,the alert notification system 183 may generate an alert message when thedata within the tagging device 112 and/or the associated item 111 doesnot match the data or information recorded for the tagging device 112and/or item 111. For example, when the digital signature comprising asigned hash inclusive of the data in the tagging item does not match thedata contained in the tagging device 112, the alert notification system183 may generate a message indicating that the data within the taggingdevice 112 may have been altered or otherwise manipulated. Similarly,when any of the data associated with the tagging device 112 and/or item111 does not match the information stored in the item information system150, the ownership registration system 160, the authentication system170, and/or the notification system 180 records, an alert may begenerated to indicate that a potential fraud has occurred. For example,when the tagging device 112 comprises the correct information, but aserial number associated with the item does not match the serial numberstored in the item information system 150, an alert message may begenerated indicating that the tagging device 112 may have been placed ona different item than the one it was originally associated with.

The alert notification system 183 may also be configured to generate analert message based on a positioning input. A positioning input may begenerated by the tagging device itself when the tagging device 112comprises a positioning sensor, and/or a positioning input may beprovided by one or more reading devices 120 at the time it obtains dataor communicates with the tagging device 112. Various locationdetermination techniques and technologies may be included in the readingdevice 120. For example, the location determination can be based on aglobal positioning system (GPS) sensor within the reading device 120. Inanother embodiment, the location of the reading device 120 may bedetermined based on an available Worldwide Interoperability forMicrowave Access (WiMAX) access point, an available WiFi access point,an available femtocell access point; or other available wireless accesspoints regardless of whether the reading device 120 is actuallyconnected to the available wireless access point. For example, thereading device 120 may receive a broadcast signal from a wireless accesspoint that contains an identifier for the subject access point. In thiscase, the indication of current location may comprise an identity of oneaccess point, identities of a plurality of access points, or otherinformation about what wireless access points are in range of thereading device 120. In an embodiment, the location of the reading device120 may be determined based on triangulation of the strength of signalsbetween a plurality of available wireless access points. In anembodiment, the location may be determined based on using combinationsof different types of location determination methods. As such, thedisclosed methods and systems are not limited to a particular method ofdetermining the location of the reading device 120.

The alert notification system 183 may be configured to generate an alertmessage when the location input indicates that the reading device 120 iscommunicating with a given tagging device 112 that is at a differentlocation greater than a threshold distance away from a previous locationinput within a threshold time limit. In general, the location input maybe used to detect that communications with the tagging device areoccurring at different locations that are beyond an expected travelspeed of the tagging device. For example, when the alert notificationsystem 183 determines that one or more reading devices 120 arecommunicating with one or more tagging devices having the same taggingdevice and/or item information in two different states within an hour ofeach other, the alert notification system 183 may determine that thereis a likelihood that the tagging device has been copied orcounterfeited. An alert notification can then be sent to the owner ofthe item, the operator of the reading device(s) communicating with thetagging device(s), and/or the operator of the system 100 to indicate thepotential for the fraudulent activity.

The alert notification system 183 may also be configured to generate analert message when the location input indicates that the item is locateda certain distance away from a predefined location and/or when thereading device cannot communicate with the tagging device, which mayindicate that the item has moved beyond a certain distance from thereading device. In an embodiment, the location input may be used todetermine that the item remains within a certain geographic area. Forexample, the location input may be used to determine the location of thetagging device, and therefore the item. The alert notification system183 may be configured to analyze the location input and determinewhether the location input falls within a geographic area (e.g., a city,zip code, neighborhood, state, country, etc.), a predetermined radius ofa predefined point, or the like. This type of analysis may allow thealert notification system 183 to establish a geofence alert that cannotify an owner, a third party, or other person when the tagging devicemoves outside the predefined area. Such an alert may be used to indicatethe unauthorized transport of the item outside of the geographic area.

In an embodiment, the alert notification system 183 may be configured toattempt to read the tagging device at one or more time periods. The timeperiods can be periodic, at predefined times, or set on a schedule basedon signal strength. For example, the reading device may attempt to reador communicate with the tagging device once an hour, once a day, or thelike. In some embodiments, the signal strength as measured by thereading device may affect the reading intervals or times. For example,as the signal strength drops, the reading device may attempt to read orcommunicate with the tagging device more often. One or more missedreadings or communications may indicate that the tagging device and theitem have moved beyond the range of the reading device. This type ofdetermination may be used to indicate the unauthorized transport of theitem outside of the geographic area or communication area or radiusassociated with the reading device.

The alert notification system 183 may also be configured to analyzevarious other inputs associated with the item such as a visual input totrack the potential for fraud. For example, a picture of the item may berecorded at various points during the life of the item. For example, apicture, video, or other visual input can be obtained when the taggingdevice is commissioned, during one or more ownership transfer processes,or upon request. The visual inputs can be automatically analyzed togenerate a probability that the item is the same item for which theprevious visual input was provided, using for example a visualrecognition system. In some embodiments, when the tagging device issubsequently read by the reading device, the visual input may beprovided to the reading device 120 or another designated system to allowthe user to compare the image with the item associated with the taggingdevice. When the system automatically detects a difference in the visualinputs taken at different times and/or when a user provides anindication that the visual input does not match the current item, thealert notification system 183 may be configured to generate an alertmessage indicating the discrepancy that can be sent to the owner of theitem, the operator of the reading device(s) communicating with thetagging device(s), a third party involved with identifying andaddressing potential counterfeit items, and/or the operator of thesystem 100.

In an embodiment, the system 100 may be in communication with an adserver 191 directly or through the network 195. Various components ofthe system 100 may be configured to communicate with the ad server tosupply data to the ad server and/or retrieve an advertisement from thead server 191. The ad server 191 may be owned or operated by theoperator of the system 100 or any other third party. In an embodiment,the ad server 191 may represent one or more servers used foradvertisement and/or marketing purposes. In some embodiments, the adserver 191 may include a coupon server to provide coupons or othermarketing materials in addition to any, or in place of, advertisements.

Initially, the system 100 may be configured to supply data to the adserver 191. The data may include any of the data stored in the system100 such as the data obtained and stored by the authentication system140. In some embodiments, the data may include records of transactionsinvolving one or more tagging devices, ownership records indicatingcurrent ownership of the items, user information such as demographicdata, and/or item information such as location, condition, etc. The dataprovided to the system may allow the advertisement server 191 to developprofiles and/or demographic data correlating the types of items owned bytypes of owners. Authentication requests and ownership transfers mayfurther indicate the types of users shopping for certain items. Thelocation data may be useful in developing regional profiles of users anditems. Finally, individual ownership information can be supplied to thead server 191.

The ad server 191 may be configured to supply ads to the system 100, forexample to the reading device 120 or any other device associated with anitem, an owner of an item, a registered user, or the like. The ads maybe tailored for a user or owner of an item. For example, demographicdata supplied to the ad server 191 may be used to supply an ad targetedto the demographic profile of the user. One or more ads may also beselected based on the current ownership records within the system. Thus,an owner may receive ads for new products that are the same or similarto those owned, or that compliment those already owned. For example, ifthe ownership records indicate that a user owns a golf club, the adserver 191 may provide ads for golf balls, shoes, golf courses, newclubs, golf lessons, etc. The ad server 191 may also be configured tosupply ads based on authentication requests. In general, a userperforming an authentication request may be interested in purchasing theitem, and the authentication request may be used to verify theauthenticity of the item prior to completing the purchase. The ad server191 may be configured to supply an ad for the same item that is beingauthenticated, associated items, or other ads targeted to thedemographic of the average user who purchases the item. For example, auser authenticating a golf club may be sent an ad for a store sellingthe same type of new golf clubs to compete with the potential purchaseof a used item. In some embodiments, a user's location may be used bythe ad server 191 to provide ads directed to regional items, itemsavailable in a close proximity, or the like. Various ads and types oftargeting can be utilized based on the type of data available to the adserver 191 from the system 100.

In an embodiment, the system 100 may be in communication with anenterprise server 192 directly and/or through the network 195. Variouscomponents of the system 100 may be configured to communicate with theenterprise server to supply data to the enterprise server 192 and/orretrieve information from the enterprise server 192. The enterpriseserver 192 may be owned or operated by the operator of the system 100 orany other third party. In an embodiment, the enterprise server 192 mayrepresent a manufacturer or operator of the device 110. The system 100may provide for enhanced operation of the device 110 by allowing theoperator to authenticate the identity of the device as well as provideset-up, operational, and trouble-shooting support. For example, thedevice may be authenticated which may provide information to theoperator about the type of device, the location of the device, and thedevice history obtained from the item information system. The operatormay then provide, for example through an interface on an application onthe reading device 120, installation instructions and support. Theapplication may also provide user manuals, a trouble-shootingapplication, usage instructions, and the like. In some embodiments, theapplication may use the information from the item information system toprovide a communication channel to a customer representative with theuser of the device to provide real time information and help.

In some embodiments, the system 100 may be used to authenticate thedevice for the enterprise server 192. For example, the device may beowned by the enterprise but operated by a user such as an employee or aperson who is a separate party. When the user wants to operate thedevice, a reading device may be used to read the tagging deviceinformation to authenticate the device. As part of the authenticationprocess, the authentication may be sent to the enterprise server 192.The authentication information may include the information for thedevice such as the I.D. of the device (e.g., a serial number), type ofdevice, and the like. In some embodiments, an authorization to use thedevice can be provided by the enterprise server based on receiving theauthentication. This may allow the device to be traced with each use. Inaddition, the enterprise server 192 may provide support and/or anapplication executing on the reading device can provide support such ascommissioning instructions and/or automation, device tracking andtracing, repair logging and scheduling, inventory functions (e.g.,inventory control, inventory alerts, etc.), live troubleshooting, andthe like. From the user's perspective, the application may enable theself-help when setting up the device, using the device, seeking repairor maintenance, uninstalling the device, and the like. The informationfor the user can be provided from the enterprise server and/or withinthe application, and the information can include items such asfrequently asked questions, lockout codes, reset options, a geo locator,and the like. As a result, the system 100 may be used not only beconsumers but also by operators to provide additional services to theuser associated with the device based on the authentication.

In an embodiment, a single tagging device 112 may be used toauthenticate an item 111. In some embodiments, a plurality of taggingdevices can be associated with an item 111 and used to verify orauthenticate the item 111 during an authentication process. For example,a plurality of tagging devices may be coupled to the item 111, and theauthentication of the item 111 may involve reading or communicating withtwo or more of the tagging devices affixed to or coupled to the item111. The plurality of tagging devices can be independent of one another,loosely coupled, or tightly coupled. When the plurality of taggingdevices are independent of one another, each tagging device may compriseits own information and not refer to or contain any information for anyother tagging device. The tagging device may be authenticated on its ownwithout the need to read or communicate with any other tagging device.In this embodiment, each tagging device of the plurality of taggingdevices may be capable of independently verifying or authenticating theitem 111.

As shown in FIG. 3A, a plurality of tagging devices 112, 212, 222 may beassociated with an item 111, and the plurality of tagging devices 112,212, 222 may be loosely coupled. The use of loosely coupled taggingdevices refers to the use of one or more primary tagging devices and oneor more secondary tagging devices, where the secondary tagging devicesare associated with the primary tagging devices but not necessarily witheach other. When the tagging devices 112, 212, 222 are loosely coupled,a first tagging device 112 may be affixed to or coupled to the item 111.The first tagging device 112 may include any of those tagging devicesdescribed above. For example, the first tagging device 112 may comprisea QR code or an NFC tag. The tagging device 112 may include any of theinformation or data described above. For example, the first taggingdevice 112 may have a first UID 113, and may have additional data suchas item information 114, one or more cryptographic keys 115, and/or acertificate date and a certificate 116 over the first tagging device 112information and/or optionally over the additional data. A secondarytagging device 212 may be coupled or affixed to the same item 111 as thefirst tagging device 112. The secondary tagging device 212 may includeany of those tagging devices described above. For example, the secondarytagging device 212 may comprise a QR code or an NFC tag. The secondarytagging device 212 may include any of the information or data describedabove. For example, the secondary tagging device 212 may have a secondUID 213, a second certificate date and a second certificate 216, asecond cryptographic key 215, and possibly other second data 214 thatmay or may not be the same in whole or in part as the data 114, if any,encoded in the first tagging device 112. The second certificate 216 maybe provided over the second UID 213, the second certificate date, anysecond data 214, the first UID 113, and possibly other item data orother data associated with the first tagging device 112. While thecertificate may be provided over the first UID 113, the secondarytagging device 212 may not store the first UID 113.

When used in an authentication or verification process, the firsttagging device 112 may be used for item authentication without the needto communicate with the secondary tagging device 212. When anauthentication or verification process is performed using the secondarytagging deice 212, the secondary tagging device 212 may require at leastthe first UID 113 be obtained from the first tagging device 112 in orderfor the second certificate 216 to be authenticated.

The system comprising loosely coupled tagging devices may be extendedwith a plurality of first tagging devices 112 being associated with onesecondary tagging device 212 in this way. Further, a plurality ofsecondary tagging devices 212, 222 may be associated with an item 111.For example, an additional secondary tagging device 222 may comprise thesame or similar information as the secondary tagging device 212, whichmay include a second UID 223, a second certificate date and a secondcertificate 226, a second cryptographic key 225, and possibly othersecond data 224 that may or may not be the same in whole or in part asthe data 114, if any, encoded in the first tagging device 112. Each pairof the first tagging device 112 and a secondary tagging device 212, 222(e.g., a first pair comprising the first tagging device 112 and thesecondary tagging device 212, a second pair comprising the first taggingdevice 112 and the additional secondary tagging device 222, etc.) maynot intersect or overlap with any of the other pairs of the firsttagging device 112 and secondary tagging device. This may allow anysecondary tagging device of a potential plurality of secondary taggingdevices 212, 222 to be authenticated or verified by reading the firsttagging device 112 along with the chosen secondary tagging device. Insome embodiments, any pair of the first tagging device 112 coupled to asecondary tagging device 212 may intersect either partially orcompletely with any other pair of the first tagging device 112 coupledto another secondary tagging device 222.

As shown in FIG. 3B, a plurality of tagging devices 112, 232 may beassociated with an item 111, and the plurality of tagging devices 112,232 may be tightly coupled. The use of tightly coupled tagging devicesrefers to the use of a plurality of tagging devices that are associatedwith each other and, optionally, one or more additional tagging devices.When the tagging devices 112, 232 are tightly coupled, a first taggingdevice 112 may be affixed to or coupled to the item 111. The firsttagging device 112 may include any of those tagging devices describedabove. The first tagging device 112 may have a first UID 113, and mayhave additional data such as item information 114, one or more firstcryptographic keys 115, and/or a first certificate date and a firstcertificate 116. The first certificate 116 may be provided over the dataassociated with the first tagging device 112 such as the first UID 113,certificate date, and optionally other information associated with thefirst tagging device 112 such as the item information 114 and one ormore cryptographic keys 115. The certificate 116 may also be providedover the second UID 233 and possibly other data associated with a secondtagging device 232. In an embodiment, signature 116 or certificate maybe included over the second UID 233 even though the second UID 233 isnot stored in the first tagging device 112. In some embodiments, thecertificate or signature 116 may also be over data contained in thethird tagging device 242 such as the third UID 243 or other datacontained in the third tagging device 242.

The second tagging device 232 may be linked to the first tagging device112 by including a signature or certificate over data from the firsttagging device 112. In an embodiment, a second tagging device 232 may becoupled or affixed to the same item 111 as the first tagging device 112,though in some embodiments, the second tagging device 232 may be coupledor affixed to a different part or portion of the item 111. The secondtagging device 232 may include any of those tagging devices describedabove, and the second tagging device 232 may include any of theinformation or data described above. In an embodiment, the secondtagging device 232 may have a second UID 233, a second certificate dateand a second certificate 236, a second cryptographic key 235, andpossibly other second data 234 that may or may not be the same in wholeor in part as the data 114, if any, encoded in the first tagging device112. The second certificate 236 may be provided over the second UID 233,the second certificate date, any second data 234, along with the firstUID 113 and possibly other item data or other data associated with thefirst tagging device 112. While the certificate may be provided over thefirst UID 113, the second tagging device 212 may not store the first UID113.

When used in an authentication or verification process, the firsttagging device 112 may be used for item authentication along with thesecondary tagging device 232. The information, or at least a portionthereof, in each tagging device 112, 232 may be read or obtained by thereading device, and an authentication or verification process may beperformed using the information from both tagging devices 112, 232. Forexample, each tagging device 112, 232 may be read to obtain both thefirst UID 113 and the second UID 233. The certificates or signatures foreach tagging device can then be verified based at least in part on theinformation obtained from the other tagging device.

The system comprising tightly coupled tagging devices may be extended tothree or more tagging devices 112, 232, 242. The plurality of taggingdevices can be related and include information from all of the othertagging devices within a signature or certificate. Each tagging devicethat is related can then be read during the verification orauthentication process. For example, an optional third tagging device242 may include a third UID 243, a third certificate date and a thirdcertificate 246, a third cryptographic key 245, and possibly other data244 that may or may not be the same in whole or in part as the data 114from the first tagging device 112 and/or the data 234 from the secondtagging device 232. The third signature 246 of the third tagging device242 may be provided over data comprising the first UID 113, the secondUID 233, and the third UID 243. As a result, each tagging device 112,232, 242 may be read in order to authenticate or verify any one of thetagging devices 112, 232, 242.

An embodiment of a golf club 250 comprising a tagging device isillustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B. The golf club 250 can be considered atagged item 110 as described with respect to FIG. 1. Any of the systemsor methods described herein for using the tagged item and tagging devicecan be used with the golf club 250 of FIGS. 4A and 4B. Coupling one ormore tagging devices to a golf club 250 can be challenging for severalreasons. When the tagging device comprises a wireless communicationdevice that is readable using electromagnetic signals (e.g., an RFIDtag, an NFC device, a Bluetooth device, WiFi enabled device, etc.), themetallic surfaces commonly found in modern golf clubs can interfere withthe communication between the tagging device and the reading device. Theinterference can limit the read range or in some cases, completely ornearly completely block the signals altogether.

In order to couple the tagging device to the golf club 250, the taggingdevice can be inserted into a cavity or depression. However, creatingthe insertion point on the club head or handle may require a re-designof the various components of the club. Further, any such re-design mayaffect the performance of the club. For example, removing material orforming a cavity may affect the center of gravity CG), the moment ofinertia (MOI), perimeter weighting, sweet spot, and other uniquecharacteristics of the golf club, which can adversely affect theperformance of the golf club.

In an embodiment, the tagging device can be coupled to the ferrule 253of a golf club 250 without needing to redesign the major functionalcomponents of the golf club 250. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, anembodiment of a golf club 250 may comprises a club head 251, a shaft252, a ferrule 253, and various other optional components (e.g., asleeve, etc.). The club head 251 can comprise a hole referred to as ahosel 254 for receiving the shaft 252 to allow the shaft 252 and clubhead 251 to form the golf club 250. As shown in FIG. 4A, the ferrule 253can be positioned over a first end of the shaft 252 and the first end ofthe shaft 252 can be inserted into an secured within the hosel 254 ofthe club head 251, for example by a screw fastener, an adhesive, or thelike. In general, the shaft 252 can be formed from a strong, lightweightbase material, such as an aluminum alloy, steel, carbon fiber, or otherstrong materials. In some embodiments, the shaft 252 is formed from ametallic material. The ferrule 253 can then be affixed to the shaft 252and/or the club head 251. In some embodiments, an optional sleeve orother element may be coupled to the end of the shaft 252 prior to theshaft being inserted into the hosel 254 and affixed to the club head251. In this embodiment, the ferrule 253 is similarly placed about thesleeve and abuts the end of the hosel 254.

The ferrule 253 can extend between the shaft 252 and an interior surfaceof the hosel 254. In this way, the ferrule 253 serves to mitigate anystress generated between the club head 251 and the shaft 252 when theclub is used to hit a golf ball. An outer surface 255 of the ferrule 253may be tapered to provide a smooth transition between the end of thehosel 254 and the outer surface 258 of the shaft 252. Some embodimentsof the ferrule can comprise an outer wall and an inner wall. The outerwall can include a tapered upper portion that connects to the top of theinner wall. The inner wall can have an annular inner surface thatdefines an opening for receiving the shaft. The resulting structure ofthe ferrule 253 is a frusto-conical hollow cone forming the ferrulebody.

The ferrule body can be made of a lightweight material, such as apolymeric material. In some embodiments, the ferrule body can comprise acellulosic material. In other embodiments, the ferrule body can compriseone or more other polymeric materials, such as, but not limited to,cellulosics such as cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate butyrate,cellulose acetate propionate, ethyl cellulose and cellulose propionate,ethylene vinyl acetate, ethylene vinyl alcohol, fluoropolymer, ionomer,nylon, aromatic polyamide, polyarylates, polyarylether, polyarylsulfone,polybutylene, polycarbonate, polyester, polyestercarbonate,polyetheretherketone, polyethylene, polyimide, polypropylene,polystyrene and styrene copolymers, polysufone, polyvinyl chloride,polyvinylidene dichloride, polyurethane, and combinations of theseand/or other polymers. In an embodiment, the ferrule 253 is formed froma non-metallic and/or non-conductive material.

As shown in FIG. 6A, a tagging device 256 may be coupled to the ferrule253. For example, a tagging device 256 comprising a wirelesscommunication device such as an RFID tag (e.g., a HF and/or UHF RFIDtag), a NFC compatible device, a Bluetooth enabled device, WiFi enableddevice, etc. can be coupled to (e.g., on a surface, etc.) and/or atleast partially embedded within the ferrule 253. The tagging device 256can be coupled to the ferrule 253 such that the tagging device 256 doesnot protrude form an outer surface of the ferrule 253. A cavity ordepression can be formed in the ferrule 253 and the tagging device 256can be coupled to the ferrule 253 in the resulting location. In someembodiments, an outer layer of material can be disposed within thecavity or depression to create a smooth outer surface of the ferrule. Insome embodiments, the tagging device 256 can be included in the ferrulebody at the time the ferrule 253 is manufactured such that the taggingdevice 256 is partially or completely encapsulated within the ferrulebody. In an embodiment, the use of a depression rather than a cavity mayallow for a greater spacing between the tagging device and the shaft toreduce any interference from the shaft material. The type of taggingdevice and the manner in which it is coupled to the ferrule 253 may beselected based on the size and shape of the ferrule, the size and shapeof the tagging device, the type of tagging device used, the type ofmaterial used to form the shaft, and/or the type of tag reader used.

When the tagging device 256 is coupled to the ferrule 253, at least aportion of the ferrule 253 may be disposed between the shaft 252 and thetagging device 256. The resulting standoff may improve communicationbetween the tagging device 256 and the reading device 120. In someembodiments, a shielding material (e.g., a ferrite shielding material)may be disposed between the tagging device 256 coupled to the ferrule253 and the shaft 252 to allow for communication with the tagging device256.

When the tagging device 256 is a wireless communication device, thetagging device 256 may take a variety of shapes. As shown in FIGS.5A-5C, the tagging device 256 generally includes an antenna portion 260comprising a length of conductive material that can be disposed in aloop or other structure. The antenna 260 is coupled to circuit 262 usedto store information and communicate with the reader. In an embodiment,the size and shape of the tagging device 256 can be selected to fitwithin the ferrule body, either completely or partially. The taggingdevices 256 used with the ferrule 253 may be relative light weight so asnot to interfere with the weight or balance of the golf club 250.

Various tagging device shapes are illustrated in the embodiments shownin FIGS. 5A-5C. The tagging device 256 can have a polygonal rectilinearshape as shown in FIG. 5A with various form factors. The antenna 260 canbe disposed in a coil with the circuit 262 in the center of the taggingdevice 256. In some embodiments, the tagging device 256 may becylindrical, oblong, or the like as shown in FIG. 5B. In still otherembodiments the tagging device 256 may be relatively flat as shown inFIG. 5C. In this embodiment, the tagging device 256 may have a circular,oval, square, or rectangular shape. The tagging device 256 of FIG. 5Ccan be used as a label that is coupled to a surface or a depression onthe ferrule 253.

The tagging device 256 can be coupled to the ferrule 253 in a number ofways. As shown in FIGS. 6A-6C, the tagging device 256 can be coupled tothe ferrule 253 using various alignments based on the shape and size ofthe tagging device 256. As shown in FIG. 6A, a cavity 264 can be formedin a ferrule 253 and the tagging device 256 can be inserted into thecavity 264. The cavity 264 can be formed from either end of the ferrule253, and the shape of the cavity 264 can be configured to receive thetagging device 256. For example, a cylindrical hole can be formed in anend of the ferrule 253 adjacent the hosel 264, and a tagging device 256can be inserted. A filler material such as a polymer, which may be thesame or different that the material forming the ferrule 253, can bedisposed in the cavity to retain the tagging device 256 in the cavity264.

FIG. 6B illustrates a cavity 266 formed on a side of the ferrule 253. Inthis embodiment, the tagging device 256 can be disposed into the cavity266. In some embodiments, the cavity 266 can extend partially or fullythrough the wall of the ferrule 253. The tagging device 256 may bealigned with the shaft 252 or at any suitable angle. A shieldingmaterial 268 can be disposed within the cavity 266 between the taggingdevice 256 and the shaft 252 to reduce the interference from the shaftmaterial. In some embodiments, the shielding material 268 can be placedbetween the ferrule 253 and the shaft 252 rather than directly adjacentthe tagging device 256. A filler material can then be disposed in thecavity 266 or depression to retain the tagging device 256 in the cavity266 and maintain the shape of the ferrule 253. In some embodiments, thefiller material may be transparent or semi-opaque such that the taggingdevice 256 disposed within the ferrule 253 can be seen from an exteriorof the ferrule 253. . In some embodiments, the filler material can beopaque and may be colored or painted to match the remainder of theferrule 253.

FIG. 6C illustrates an embodiment similar to FIG. 6B. In thisembodiment, a depression 270 may be formed on an outside surface of theferrule 253. The tagging device 256 can be placed in the depression 270and adhered to the ferrule 253 using an adhesive or the like. In someembodiments, the outside surface of the tagging device 256 may be flushwith the outer surface of the ferrule 253 when the tagging device 256 isplaced in the depression 270. In some embodiments, the depression 270may be deep enough to allow the tagging device 256 to be placed in thedepression 270 and a layer of filler material disposed over the taggingdevice 256 to create a flush outer surface of the ferrule 253. Thefiller material may be transparent or semi-opaque. In some embodiments,the use of the tagging device 256 near the surface without any fillermaterial or with a transparent or semi-opaque filer material may allowfor a radio frequency tag and/or a visual tag (e.g., a bar code, a QRcode, etc.) to be used with the golf club 250.

Coupling the tagging device 256 to the ferrule 253 as described hereinmay advantageously reduce the need to modify the shaft and/or club headto receive the tagging device. Placing the tagging device 256 at thelocation of the ferrule 253 may also provide a consistent location forthe tagging device such that a user wishing to scan the tagging devicemay look for the tagging device in the same location on each golf club.A clear window in front of the tagging device may allow for a visuallyreadable tagging device such as a bar code, QR code or the like.

In some embodiments, the tagging device 256 can be coupled to the hosel254 in place of or in addition to the ferrule 253. The hosel 254 cangenerally be formed from metal or a conductive material. In order toread the tagging device 254 when the tagging device 254 communicateswirelessly, the tagging device 256 can be disposed in a cavity thatextends entirely through the hosel. In some embodiments, a non-metallicarea may be formed in the hosel 254 to allow the tagging device 256 tobe inserted. In some embodiments, the shielding material may be disposedadjacent the tagging device 256 in the hosel 254 to allow the taggingdevice 256 to communicate with a reading device.

In general, the tagging device 256 can be inserted into the hosel 254 inany of the configurations and orientations described with respect to theferrule 253, including the use of the filler material. Further, aplurality of tagging devices can be used with a golf club, with one ormore being associated with the club head (e.g., by being disposed in thehosel 254), and one or more being associated with the shaft and/or theferrule. This may allow individual components of the golf club to beauthenticated, for example, to allow for maintenance or repair whileensuring the authenticity of the various components.

An embodiment of a tagging device disposed in the hosel is illustratedin FIG. 6D. As illustrated, the golf club may have the shaft 252disposed within the hosel 254. In some embodiments, the golf club maynot have a ferrule, while in other embodiments, the ferrule may bepresent as described herein. As illustrated, a cavity 280 can be formedthrough a side of the hosel 254. In this embodiment, the tagging device256 can be disposed into the cavity 280. In some embodiments, the cavity280 can extend partially or fully through the wall of the hosel 254. Thetagging device 256 may be aligned with the shaft 252 or at any suitableangle. The cavity 280 may be aligned in various positions with respectto the club head and club face. For example, the cavity may be formed ona side of the hosel 254 opposite, or at least not aligned with, the clubface to prevent accidental strikes between a ball and the tagging device256 and/or filler material. In some embodiments, a shielding materialcan be disposed within the cavity 266 between the tagging device 256 andthe shaft 252 and/or between or around the tagging device 256 and thewall of the hosel 254 to reduce the interference from the shaft and/orhosel material. A filler material can then be disposed in the cavity 280or depression to retain the tagging device 256 in the cavity 280 andmaintain the shape of the hosel 254. In some embodiments, the fillermaterial may be transparent or semi-opaque such that the tagging device256 disposed within the ferrule 253 can be seen from an exterior of theferrule 253. In some embodiments, the filler material can be opaque andmay be colored or painted to match the remainder of the hosel 254.Various other alignments, orientations, and types of tagging device 256(e.g., a visually readable tagging device such as a barcode or QR code,etc.) can also be used on the hosel 254.

The reading device 120 of FIG. 1 may form a portion of theauthentication system 170 and/or the authentication system 171. Forexample, the reading device 120 may execute an authenticationapplication 122 configured to operate to obtain tagging device 112 data,communicate the data to the authentication system 170, and potentiallymediate the authentication of the tagging device 112. As shown in FIG.7, a reading device 120 may comprise a mobile device 302. The mobiledevice 302 may comprise a display 304, a radio transceiver 306, aprocessor 308, a memory 310, an optional camera 316, and one or moreoptional peripheral devices 318. The memory 310 of the mobile device 302may further comprise a plurality of applications 312 including anauthentication application 122. The radio transceiver 306 may comprise atag communication device 307. In an embodiment the mobile device 302 mayinclude, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a laptop computer, anotebook computer, a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant, or amedia player. In an embodiment, the mobile device 302 may be implementedas a handset.

The authentication application 122 may be stored in the memory 310 andexecute on the processor 308. When executed on the processor 308, theauthentication application 122 may configure the processor 308 tocommunicate with the tagging device and/or the authentication systemusing the radio transceiver 306 or the tag communication device 307. Inan embodiment, the authentication application 122 may configure theprocessor 308 to communicate with the tagging device and obtain at leasta portion of the tagging device data. When the tagging device comprisesa visually readable tagging device such as a linear bar code, a QR code,or the like, the authentication application 122 may interact with thecamera 316 or other peripheral device to obtain an image of the taggingdevice. The authentication application 122 may then be configured todecode, decrypt, or otherwise obtain the information from the taggingdevice image. In some embodiments, the authentication application 122may act as an information portal for the authentication system and sendthe image of the tagging device back to the authentication system fordecoding at an authentication system server.

In an embodiment, the tagging device may comprise a wirelessly enabledcommunication device such as an RFID tag, an NFC tag, or the like. Theauthentication application 122 may interact with the radio transceiver306 and/or a specialized tag communication device 307 to communicatewirelessly with the tagging device. The authentication application 122may then be configured to decode, decrypt, or otherwise obtain theinformation from the tagging device image. The authenticationapplication 122 may be configured to execute a series of communicationsaccording to a communication protocol with or without the aid of theauthentication system in order to obtain the tagging device data fromthe tagging device. This process may be referred to as mediating thecommunications with the tagging device in some contexts. In someembodiments, the authentication application 122 may act as aninformation portal for the authentication system and routecommunications and messages to and from the authentication system forcommunicating with the tagging device to obtain the tagging device data.

In an embodiment, the authentication application 122 may also beconfigured to execute on the processor 308 to perform an authenticationor verification process for the tagging device. In addition to mediatingthe communications with the tagging device, the authenticationapplication 122 may serve to compare one or more communications,responses, data, or other indicators to determine when the taggingdevice is verified or authenticated. For example, the authenticationapplication 122 may receive an expected response from the authenticationsystem and compare that response with a response received from a taggingdevice resulting from a challenge. The authentication application 122can then compare the two responses to see if the responses correspond,and the authentication application 122 can generate the verification ofthe tagging device based on the results of the comparison. Thecommunication protocols and authentication process that may be carriedout by the authentication application 122 are described in more detailherein.

The system 100 may further comprise a base transceiver station (“BTS”)320, a short range communication interface 322, and a network 195. Thenetwork 195 may be communicatively coupled to the BTS 320 and/or theshort range communication interface 322. In an embodiment, the basetransceiver station 320 may provide a wireless communication link to themobile device 302 and communicatively couple it to the network 195. Inan embodiment, the base transceiver station 320 may provide a wirelesscommunication link to the mobile communication device 302 according toone of a CDMA wireless protocol, a GSM wireless protocol, an LTEwireless protocol, a WiMAX wireless protocol, or another wirelesscommunication protocol. Similarly, the short range communicationinterface 322 may provide a wired or wireless communication link to themobile device 302 and communicatively couple it to the network 195. Theshort range communication interface 322 may communicate with the mobiledevice 302 using various wireless communication protocols such as WiFiand Bluetooth, and/or various wired communication protocols. While onebase transceiver station 320 and one short range communication interface322 are illustrated in FIG. 7, it is understood that the system maycomprise any number of mobile devices 302, any number of basetransceiver stations 320, and any number of short range communicationinterface 322.

In order to utilize the system 100, the tagging device can be createdand coupled or affixed to the item. The tagging device is generallycreated or commissioned at or near the time it is coupled or affixed tothe item to allow the item to be tracked as it enters a stream ofcommerce. Various commissioning processes can be used to generate thetagging device and the data/information associated with the taggingdevice, which can comprise any of the information described herein.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a process 400 for commissioning a taggingdevice. In operation, the system 100 allows one or more items to betagged, tracked, and an ownership history to be developed. Thecommissioning process 400 begins with the creation of the data for thetagging device at step 402. The tagging device can include any of thosetagging devices described above (e.g., any of the tagging devices 112described with respect to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2), and the data may includeany of the data described above and may vary depending on the type oftagging device selected. The tagging device data may comprise at least aunique ID (UID) 403 individually identifying the tagging device.Additional data may include item data such as a manufacturer or serialnumber.

At step 404, a digital signature may be signed over the UID 403 and atime stamp representing the time of the commissioning of the taggingdevice may be generated. Tagging devices such as QR codes, linear barcodes, and RFID tags with sufficient writable memory may have acryptographically generated signature, for example obtained with apublic key cipher like RSA, a keyed hash function, or a hash function,written to the device or as the data encoded by the encoding mechanismof the device (such as the black and white lines in a linear bar code).The amount of data and complexity of the digital signature may depend onthe type of tagging device being commissioned as well as the writablememory available in the tagging device.

At step 406, the UID and certificate for the chosen tag may optionallybe encoded. The amount and type of encoding may also depend on the typeof tagging device being commissioned as well as the writable memoryavailable in the tagging device. The UID and certificate can then bewritten to the tagging device. As noted below, the UID, certificate,and/or the time stamp may be written to the authentication system atthis point, or at any point before step 418.

At step 408, the additional data, including the date, can be optionallywritten or encoded on the tagging device. For a bar code or QR code, thecode may be printed on a label, directly on the item, and/or provided ona tamper resistant packaging. For more complex tagging devices such asRFID tags, NFC enabled tags, Bluetooth devices, and the like, theinformation may be transmitted or otherwise stored in the taggingdevice.

At step 410, it is determined whether a cryptographic functionality isto be included on the tagging device. This determination may be based inpart on the type of tagging device selected as only some types oftagging devices support cryptographic functionality. When it isdetermined that no cryptographic functionality is to be included on thetagging device, the tagging device UID, data, key or key pair used togenerate the certificate, and the certificate may be transmitted to theauthentication system 170 and stored for future use in step 412.

When it is determined at step 410 that cryptographic functionality is tobe included on the tagging device, a secret key or key pair may begenerated at step 414. RFID tags, including NFC tags that containcryptographic functionality, may have one or more secret keys or keypairs written into the tagging device during the commissioning process.The keys may be written to the tagging device at step 416. At step 418,the tagging device UID, data, certificate, and keys may be transmittedto the authentication system 170 and stored for future use. For securitypurposes, the secret key may be commissioned to the key server 190rather than the authentication server 170. The key server 190 may thenmaintain the secret key for use with verification requests. Theauthentication system 170 and key server 190 may store the cryptographickeys used during the commissioning process 400 and associate the keys tothe data contained within the tagging devices commissioned with them.The authentication system 170 stores information such as the taggingdevice identifier (UID), the item identifier, or other item or taggingdevice information that is associated with a tagging device. For taggingdevices that do not have data storage or data encoding capabilities,such as RFID tags that can store only an identifier, a cryptographic keymay not be stored in the authentication server associated with thattagging device.

In some embodiments, the commissioning process 400 may be carried out ina different order or series of steps to accomplish the same or similarresult. For example, steps 410, 414, and 416 may be performed after theUID is generated and before the item data is created at step 402. Thus,the process 400 may be carried out in any order that generates andencodes the information to the tagging device and reports theinformation to the authentication system for use in subsequentauthentication processes.

When multiple tagging devices are associated with a single device, thecommissioning process of each tag may occur sequentially or in parallel.In an embodiment in which the tagging devices are independent of eachother, the commissioning process may proceed sequentially. Each tag maybe independently created and the information may be stored in theauthentication system 170. Subsequently, each tag may be independentlyverified using the authentication system 170.

In an embodiment in which the tagging devices are loosely coupled, afirst tagging device may be commissioned, and the data used to createthe first tagging device may be saved and used to create one or moresecondary tagging devices. For example, a first tagging device may becreated and the UID of the first tagging device may be saved in thecommissioning system. When one or more secondary tagging devices arecreated, the UID from the first tagging device may be used during thesigning process to create the signature or certificate over the data inthe secondary tagging device. This process may link one or moresecondary tagging devices to the first tagging device.

In an embodiment in which the tagging devices are tightly coupled, theplurality of tagging devices may be created in parallel. The UID of eachtagging device may be created along with any additional data for eachtagging device. One or more UID for tightly coupled tagging devices maythen be used during the signing process to create the signatures orcertificates over the data in each tagging device. This process may linkthe one or more tagging devices.

The commissioning process 400 may be carried out by the owner of thesystem 100 or another entity (e.g., the manufacturer of the item 111),and the commissioning may occur before, after, or partially before andpartially after the tagging device 112 is affixed to the item 111.Commissioned tagging devices may have generic information encoded withinthem, no information encoded within them, or item specific informationencoded within them. The tagging device 112 may be partiallycommissioned prior to being affixed to an item 111, for example byhaving a secret key written into the tagging device 112 with the secretkey and the identity of the tagging device 112 (e.g., the UID) beingstored in the authentication system 170. The commissioning may then becompleted after the tagging device 112 is coupled to a specific item111, for example by writing item specific data such as the itemidentifier into the memory of the tagging device 112.

After the commissioning process, the tagging device may be coupled,attached, affixed, or otherwise associated with the item. The taggeditem may enter circulation either as an item owned by an individual oras an item moving through a supply chain or both. The owner, aprospective purchaser, or both may desire to authenticate the item toensure that it is authentic at any number of times. For example, theowner may wish to authenticate the item to verify that the item has notbeen tampered with or exchanged for a different item of the same type.Further, the owner, the prospective purchaser, or both may wish toauthenticate the item when the item is to be transferred from one ownerto the potential purchaser. One or both of the parties may initiate theauthentication process. In general, the authentication process mayinvolve one or more communications with the authentication system 170 toverify the information in the tagging device. The information can beautomatically obtained by a reading device 120 and/or the informationcan be manually entered. The resulting authentication may provide areasonable likelihood that the item associated with the tagging deviceat the time of commissioning and/or manufacturing is the same itemhaving the same tagging device.

Various processes may be used to perform the authentication process.FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart of a process 500 for authenticating atagging device. When a person chooses to authenticate the item, thatperson may begin the authentication process by executing anauthentication application in step 502. In an embodiment, theauthentication application comprises a computer program on a localcomputing device such as the reading device, which may comprise a mobiledevice capable of reading or communicating with the tagging device. Insome embodiments, the authentication application may be part of theauthentication system 170 and execute on the authentication systemserver. The information from the tagging device can be manually enteredand transmitted to the authentication application on the authenticationsystem 170 using, for example, a web portal or other input structure. Ineither event, the authentication application may provide thefunctionality for the authentication system 170 to verify that theperson has permission to authenticate the item. For example, theauthentication application may receive user credentials to verify theidentity and rights of the user requesting the authentication of theitem.

At step 504, the tagging device data in the tagging device is retrieved.The tagging device data may include a tagging device ID (e.g., the UID),authentication information, item data, and/or any other data stored inthe tagging device. The authentication application may communicate withthe reading device and allow it to obtain the data encoded within thetagging device. For tagging devices with cryptographic functionality,the authentication application may begin a communication sequence toallow for authentication of the tagging device, and therefore the item.If tagging device data plus a certificate is retrieved from the taggingdevice, the authentication application may communicate with theauthentication server in order to authenticate the data protected by thecertificate.

At step 506, the data stored within the authentication system may beretrieved for use with the authentication application. The data storedin the authentication system may comprise tagging device data, itemdata, digital certificates, cryptographic keys, and the like. The datamay be stored in the authentication system at the time of commissioningthe tagging device, when the tagging device is coupled to the item,and/or at a later time (e.g., when the item having the tagging device isfirst sold by the manufacturer, etc.). The stored tagging device datamay be obtained from the authentication system and/or a component incommunication with the authentication system. For example, acryptographic key may be obtained from the key server for use inauthenticating the tagging device.

At step 508, the tagging device data can be correlated with theinformation retrieved from the authentication system. Correlating theinformation can include a comparison performed by one or more componentsof the authentication system, the authentication application, and/or thereading device. Correlating the information can also include a directcomparison, an authentication process involving the information, anynumber of cryptographic authentications, or the like. The use of theterm “correlate” should not limit the verification or authentication toa direct comparison between the information.

When the information obtained from the tagging device does not correlateto the information stored in the authentication system, the taggingdevice may not be authenticated. In this event, the process 500 mayproceed to step 510 where a message may be generated by theauthentication application indicating that the tagging device, andthereby the item, is not verified. The message may include additionalinformation about the tagging device or the item that was obtained fromeither the tagging device or the authentication server or some otherserver. For example, the message may comprise item information such as amodel number or serial number associated with the tagging device, whichmay not match that of the item when the item is not verified.

When the information obtained from the tagging device correlates withthe information stored in the authentication system, the tagging devicemay be authenticated. The process 500 may then proceed to step 512 wherea verification message may be generated indicating that the taggingdevice is verified, thereby verifying the item associated with thetagging device. The message may include additional information about thetagging device or the item that was obtained from the tagging device,the authentication server, and/or some other server.

The authentication server may record and store the data associated withan item authenticity request. This data may include, but is not limitedto, the time and date, user information, data associated with theauthentication request, network information associated with the request,location data, and/or information associated with the authenticationapplication that performed the authenticity request. The information maybe stored whether or not the tagging device is verified as beingauthenticated. In some embodiments, some or all of the informationrelated to the authentication request can be supplied to an ad server191.

In an embodiment, one or more ads may be supplied to a user, for exampleover the reading device, in response to the authentication request. Theads may be based on the subject of the authentication request. Forexample, an ad server may be configured to provide ads based on the itemauthenticated in the authentication process or any item related to theitem authenticated in the authentication process. In some embodiments,the ads may be based on one or more characteristics (e.g., demographics,location, etc.) of the user initiating the authentication request. Anyof the types of ads or considerations for providing the ads describedherein can be used to supply one or more ads to a user.

In some counterfeiting schemes, data and certificates may be read fromone tagging device and written to another tagging device to copy orcounterfeit the tagging device. For example, a first QR code may be readby one reading device and then a second QR code encoding the sameinformation just read from the first QR code may be printed on a labelthat is affixed to a different item. In order to mitigate the impact ofthis type of counterfeiting, complex tagging devices such ascryptographically enabled RFID tags may be used. The authenticationapplication, through the reading device, may establish a communicationchannel with the complex tagging device. Through a sequence ofcommunications with the authentication system and the tagging devicewhere the authentication application acts as an intermediary between thetwo, the authentication application may determine the authenticity ofthe tagging device and therefore the item. The authenticationapplication may inform the person initiating the authentication processof the authenticity of the tagging device and possibly additionalinformation about the tagging device or the item that was obtained fromeither the tagging device or the authentication server or some otherserver.

FIG. 10 illustrates a messaging diagram 600 of a process forauthenticating a cryptographically enabled tagging device. The process600 may begin at step 602 with the reading device 120 sending a firstchallenge message to the tagging device 112. The first challenge messagemay be created and sent by an authentication application executing onthe reading device 120. One or more messages or communications may besent between the reading device 120 and the tagging device 112 prior tothe reading device 120 sending the first challenge message 602 in orderto establish communications between the tagging device 112 and thereading device 120. The first challenge message may comprise challengedata as part of the authentication process.

At step 604, the tagging device may encrypt the challenge data in thechallenge message. In an embodiment, the tagging device 112 may use aprivate key stored in the tagging device to encrypt the challenge data.In some embodiments, the tagging device 112 may use a private key tosign the challenge data. The tagging device 112 may then send theencrypted challenge data as a first response back to the reading device120 in step 606. The tagging device 112 may also send additionalinformation in the first response such as the UID of the tagging device112, item data, a digital signature, a signature date, and/or anyadditional information stored in the tagging device 112. At step 608,the reading device 120 may send the first challenge message and data,the first response message, and any of the additional informationobtained from the tagging device 112 to the authentication system 170.

The information may be processed by the authentication system 170. Atstep 610, the authentication system 170 may receive the information fromthe reading device 120 and utilize the UID or other identifier from thetagging device 112 to locate the cryptographic key, such as the secretkey and/or the public key, of the tagging device. In some embodiments,the cryptographic key may be stored in a secure server such as the keyserver. Upon locating the cryptographic key, the authentication servermay verify the response received in the first response message. Forexample, the authentication server 170 may decrypt the first responseusing the public key associated with a private key on the taggingdevice. The authentication server 170 may then compare the decryptedfirst response message with the first challenge message. A match mayindicate that the tagging device 112 is storing the appropriatecryptographic key. This may allow the authentication system 170 toverify the cryptographic key stored in the tagging device.

At step 612, the authentication server 170 may retrieve or locate acryptographic key such as a secret key and/or a public key associatedwith the tagging device 112. The cryptographic key may be located in akey server in communication with the authentication system 170. At step614, the authentication system 170 may create a second challenge messagecomprising second challenge data. The authentication server 170 mayencrypt the second challenge data to create a second response messagecomprising the encrypted second challenge data. The second challengemessage may be encrypted using the key retrieved in step 612. When aprivate key is used to sign the challenge data in step 604, the keyretrieved in step 612 may be a public key, and the second challengemessage may be encrypted using the public key. This information may thenbe sent to the reading device 120 from the authentication server 170 instep 616.

At step 618, the second challenge message comprising the secondchallenge data can be sent to the tagging device 112. The tagging device112 can then encrypt the second challenge data in step 620. The secondchallenge data may be encrypted using the same key or a different keythan the one used to encrypt the first challenge data. The resultingencryption process may generate a third response comprising theencrypted data. The tagging device 112 may then send the third responseto the reading device 120.

Upon being received by the reading device 120, the third response may becompared to the second response generated by the authentication server170 in step 624. The authentication application operating on the readingdevice 120 may perform the comparison of the second response and thethird response. A match between the second response and the thirdresponse in step 626 may further verify the authenticity of the taggingdevice based on the information stored in the authentication system 170or an associated server (e.g., the key server).

In some embodiments, the authentication process 600 can comprisedifferent types of authentications of the tagging device 112. Forexample, the authentication system 170 may send a second challenge and apublic key corresponding to the tagging device 112 in step 616. In someembodiments, the authentication system 170 may only send a public key ofcorresponding to the tagging device 112 in step 616, and the readingdevice 120 can generate the second challenge and corresponding data. Thesecond challenge can then be send to the tagging device 112 as describedabove. The second challenge data may be encrypted using a private keystored in the tagging device 112 to generate the third response. Uponreceiving the third response, the reading device 120 may decrypt thethird response using the public key received from the authenticationsystem. The reading device 120 may compare the decrypted third responseto the second challenge, which may be received from the authenticationsystem 170 or generated within the reading device 120 itself, asdescribed above. A match would indicate that the tagging device 112 isverified.

In some embodiments, the authentication system 170 may send a secondchallenge and a public key corresponding to the tagging device 112 instep 616. The authentication system 170 may only send a public key ofcorresponding to the tagging device 112 in step 616, and the readingdevice 120 can generate the second challenge and corresponding datausing the public key received from the authentication system 170. Inthis embodiment, the encrypted second challenge can then be send to thetagging device 112 where the encrypted second challenge can be decryptedusing the private key stored on the tagging device 112. The decryptedchallenge can be returned as the third response. The second challengecan then be compared to the third response by the reading device 120 asdescribed above with respect to steps 624 and 626. A match wouldindicate that the tagging device 112 is verified.

The authentication server may catalogue the data associated with an itemauthenticity request(s). This data may include any of the data receivedby the authentication server 170 during the authentication process aswell as information sent from the reading device 120 to theauthentication system 170 upon performing the matching step 626, whichmay indicate that a match is found or not found.

The authentication process may also be used when multiple taggingdevices are associated with the item. When multiple tagging devices areused that are independent of each other, each tagging device can beauthenticated using the authentication processes described above. Eachauthentication process may individually authenticate the correspondingtagging device and the authentication process can be repeated any numberof times to authenticate each tagging device. Individual authenticationmay be useful to authenticate an item having multiple tagging devicesassociated with different parts or portions. The use of individualtagging devices may allow each part or piece of the item to beauthenticated. However, the use of individual tagging devices may notprovide for an authentication of the item as a whole. For example, theindividual authentication may indicate that each part is authentic, butnot that the parts were not originally associated with each other in theitem as they are at the time that the tagging devices are separatelyauthenticated.

In an embodiment in which multiple, loosely coupled tagging devices areused, a first tagging device may be independent of any other taggingdevices associated with an item. The first tagging device may beauthenticated using the authentication processes described above. Asecond tagging device may comprise a signature or certificate providedover information contained within the first tagging device. For example,a signature or certificate in the second tagging device may be providedover the UID of the first tagging device. This may require that both thefirst and second tagging devices be read in order to authenticate thesecond tagging device. The loosely coupled tagging devices may allow fordistinct parts of an item to be individually authenticated, and theauthenticity and originality of the entire item to be authenticated.

FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart of a process 630 for authenticating anitem comprising loosely coupled tagging devices, where a first taggingdevice is independent and a second tagging device is loosely coupled tothe first tagging device. As a non-limiting example, the process 630 maybe used to authenticate a golf club having a club head and a shaft,which are different parts that can be assembled and/or replaced to forma golf club. The authentication process can be used to verify that theclub head and shaft are the original components used to form the cluband that one of the component has not been counterfeited or replaced. Inthis example, the first tagging device may be associated with the clubhead, and the second tagging device may be associated with the shaft. Ingeneral, the first tagging device can be authenticated independently ofthe second tagging device using any of the methods described herein. Theauthentication of the first tagging device may indicate that the item,or portion thereof, associated with the first tagging device isauthenticate. For example, authentication of the first tagging devicemay indicate that the club head represents an authentic club head.However, this authentication or verification may not provide anindication that the overall club is authentic or that the shaft is theshaft that was associated with the club head when the club wasmanufactured.

When a person chooses to authenticate the second tagging device, thatperson may begin the authentication process by executing anauthentication application in step 632, which can be the same or similarauthentication application described with respect to FIG. 9 or FIG. 10.At step 634, the tagging device data in the first tagging device may beretrieved. The tagging device data may include a tagging device ID(e.g., the UID), authentication information, item data, and/or any otherdata stored in the tagging device. This information may include any dataincluded in the signature or certificate of the second tagging device.The information from the first tagging device may be retrieved frommemory if the first tagging device is authenticated before the secondtagging device.

At step 636, the second tagging device data can be retrieved. In someembodiments, the second tagging device data can be retrieved prior toretrieving the tagging device data from the first tagging device. Thesecond tagging device data may include a certificate or signature alongwith a tagging device UID, authentication information, item data, anyother data stored in the tagging device. The certificate or signature ofthe second tagging device may be provided over at least the UID of thesecond tagging device and at least some data (e.g., the UID) of thefirst tagging device. The authentication application may communicatewith the reading device and allow it to obtain the data encoded withinthe second tagging device. For tagging devices with cryptographicfunctionality, the authentication application may begin a communicationsequence to allow for the data to be obtained from the second taggingdevice.

At step 638, the data stored within the authentication system may beretrieved for use with the authentication application. The data storedin the authentication system may comprise tagging device data, itemdata, digital certificates, cryptographic keys, and the like. The datamay be stored in the authentication system at the time of commissioningthe tagging device, when the tagging device is coupled to the item,and/or at a later time (e.g., when the item having the tagging device isfirst sold by the manufacturer, etc.). The stored tagging device datamay be obtained from the authentication system and/or a component incommunication with the authentication system. For example, acryptographic key may be obtained from the key server for use inauthenticating the tagging device.

In order to authenticate the second tagging device, the second taggingdevice data can be correlated with the information retrieved from theauthentication system in step 640. When the information obtained fromthe second tagging device does not correlate to the information storedin the authentication system, the second tagging device may not beauthenticated. In this event, the process 630 may proceed to step 642where a message may be generated by the authentication applicationindicating that the second tagging device, and thereby the item, is notverified. The message may include additional information about thetagging device or the item that was obtained from either the taggingdevice or the authentication server or some other server.

When the information obtained from the second tagging device correlateswith the information stored in the authentication system, the secondtagging device may be authenticated. The process 630 may then proceed tostep 644 where a verification message may be generated indicating thatthe second tagging device is verified, thereby verifying the item, orthe portion of the item, associated with the second tagging device. Themessage may include additional information about the tagging device orthe item that was obtained from the tagging device, the authenticationserver, and/or some other server.

In the example, the verification of the second tagging device mayindicate that the golf club shaft is authenticated. The authenticationof the second tagging device may be limited to an authentication of theportion of the item to which the second tagging device is affixed orcoupled. In this example, the shaft may itself be an authenticatedshaft, but the authentication of the second tagging device by itself maynot indicate that the club head and the shaft are authenticated asbelonging together.

In order to authenticate the second tagging device as being looselycoupled to the first tagging device, the certificate or signatureobtained from the second tagging device may be validated based on theinformation obtained from both the first tagging device and the secondtagging device. At step 646, the certificate or signature associatedwith the second tagging device data can be analyzed based on theinformation obtained from the second tagging device as well as the firsttagging device. The analysis may be used to determine if the certificateor signature in the second tagging device was signed over the data inthe second tagging device as well as one or more elements of informationfrom the first tagging device (e.g., the UID of the first taggingdevice).

When the information obtained from the analysis in step 646 does notindicate that the signature or certificate from the second taggingdevice was signed over the information from the first tagging device,the authentication of the item as a whole may fail. In this event, theprocess 630 may proceed to step 648 where a message may be generated bythe authentication application indicating that the second tagging devicedoes not correlate to the first tagging device, and therefore theoverall item is not verified.

In the example, such a finding may indicate that while each component isitself authenticated, the club head was not originally associated withthe shaft. This may indicate that the shaft or the club head wasreplaced at some point in time between the commissioning of the firstand second tagging devices and execution of the authentication process630.

When the information obtained from the analysis in step 646 indicatesthat the signature or certificate from the second tagging device wassigned over the information from the first tagging device, the item as awhole may be verified. In this event, the process 630 may proceed tostep 650 where a message may be generated by the authenticationapplication indicating that the second tagging device correlates withthe first tagging device, and therefore the overall item is verified.

In the example, such a finding may indicate that the club head isproperly associated with the shaft in the overall golf club. Forexample, the analysis may indicate that the same club head is stillassociated with the same shaft that existed at the time the first andsecond tagging devices were commissioned. A prospective purchaser,owner, or the like may use this information to verify that the golf clubis still genuine.

The authentication server may record and store the data associated withan item authenticity request. This data may include, but is not limitedto, the time and date, user information, data associated with theauthentication request, network information associated with the request,location data, information associated with the authenticationapplication that performed the authenticity request, and/or informationassociated with the first tagging device and the second tagging device.The information may be stored whether or not the tagging device isverified as being authenticated and whether or not the first taggingdevice is correlated with the second tagging device as being looselycoupled.

In an embodiment in which the tagging devices are tightly coupled, eachof a plurality of devices are related. For example, a first and secondtagging device may be tightly coupled with each being signed over dataincluding the other tagging device's UID. The verification of eachtagging device then depends on obtaining information from the othertagging device. Further, the verification of an overall item may bebased upon reading or communicating with all of the tagging devices. Inthe example provided above, a golf club head and shaft may beindividually authenticated only after reading both tags, which may alsoprovide an authentication of the overall golf club.

FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart of a method for authenticating aplurality of tagging devices that are tightly coupled. When a personchooses to authenticate the tagging devices associated with an item,that person may begin the authentication process by executing anauthentication application in step 662, which can be the same or similarauthentication application described with respect to FIG. 9 or FIG. 10.At step 664, the tagging device data in the first tagging device may beretrieved. At step 666, the tagging device data in the second taggingdevice may be retrieved. In some embodiments, the order of steps 664 and666 may be reversed. The tagging device data obtained from the firsttagging device and/or the second tagging device may include a taggingdevice UID, item data, keys, signatures and dates, and/or any other datastored in the tagging device. This information may include any dataincluded in the signature or certificate of the corresponding tightlycoupled tagging device or devices.

At step 668, the data stored within the authentication system may beretrieved for use with the authentication application. The data storedin the authentication system may comprise tagging device data, itemdata, digital certificates, cryptographic keys, and the like. The datamay be stored in the authentication system at the time of commissioningthe tagging device, when the tagging device is coupled to the item,and/or at a later time (e.g., when the item having the tagging device isfirst sold by the manufacturer, etc.). The stored tagging device datamay be obtained from the authentication system and/or a component incommunication with the authentication system. For example, acryptographic key may be obtained from the key server for use inauthenticating the tagging device. In some embodiments, theauthentication application may serve as the authentication system, andthe data may be retrieved from memory or other location associated withthe authentication application.

In order to authenticate the first tagging device, the first taggingdevice data can be correlated with the information retrieved from theauthentication system in step 670. The correlation may include verifyingthe certificate or signature associated with the first tagging device,which may require data from the second tagging device. When theinformation obtained from the first tagging device does not correlate tothe information stored in the authentication system, the first taggingdevice may not be authenticated. In this event, the process 660 mayproceed to step 672 where an optional message may be generated by theauthentication application indicating that the first tagging device, andthereby the item, is not verified. The message may include additionalinformation about the tagging device or the item that was obtained fromeither the tagging device or the authentication server or some otherserver.

When the information obtained from the first tagging device correlateswith the information stored in the authentication system, the firsttagging device may be authenticated. The process 660 may then proceed tostep 674 where an optional verification message may be generatedindicating that the first tagging device is verified, thereby verifyingthe item, or the portion of the item, associated with the second taggingdevice. The message may include additional information about the taggingdevice or the item that was obtained from the tagging device, theauthentication server, and/or some other server.

In order to authenticate the second tagging device, the second taggingdevice data can be correlated with the information retrieved from theauthentication system in step 676. The correlation may be the same orsimilar to the correlation carried out with respect to step 670. Whenthe information obtained from the second tagging device does notcorrelate to the information stored in the authentication system, thesecond tagging device may not be authenticated. In this event, theprocess 660 may proceed to step 678 where an optional message may begenerated by the authentication application indicating that the secondtagging device, and thereby the item, is not verified.

When the information obtained from the second tagging device correlateswith the information stored in the authentication system, the secondtagging device may be authenticated. The process 660 may then proceed tostep 680 where an optional verification message may be generatedindicating that the first tagging device is verified, thereby verifyingthe item, or the portion of the item, associated with the second taggingdevice.

In order to authenticate the first and second tagging devices as beingtightly coupled to each other, the certificate or signature obtainedfrom each tagging device may be validated based on the informationobtained from both the first tagging device and the second taggingdevice. At step 682, the certificate or signature associated with thefirst tagging device and/or the certificate or signature associated withthe second tagging device can be analyzed based on the informationobtained from both the first and second tagging devices. The analysismay be used to determine if the certificate or signature in the firsttagging device was signed over data that includes information from thesecond tagging device and/or the analysis may be used to determine ifthe certificate or signature in the second tagging device was signedover data that includes information from the first tagging device. Insome embodiments, only a single certificate or signature needs to beverified based on information from both tagging devices in order toverify whether or not the tagging devices are tightly coupled.

When the information obtained from the analysis in step 682 does notindicate that the signature or certificate from the one or both of thetagging devices was signed over the information from the both taggingdevices, the authentication of the item as a whole may fail. In thisevent, the process 660 may proceed to step 684 where a message may begenerated by the authentication application indicating that the firsttagging device does not correlate to the second tagging device, andtherefore the overall item is not verified. When the informationobtained from the analysis in step 682 indicates that the signature orcertificate from the one or both of the tagging devices was signed overthe information from the both tagging devices, the item as a whole maybe verified. In this event, the process 682 may proceed to step 686where a message may be generated by the authentication applicationindicating that the first tagging device correlates with the secondtagging device, and therefore the overall item is verified. Theinformation associated with the authentication process 660 mayoptionally be recorded and stored as described herein.

In the example above, a golf club can be authenticated using two tightlycoupled tagging devices. In this example, the first tagging device onthe club head can contain at least a first UID, a date stamp, optionallyadditional data (i.e., keys, item data, etc.), and a first certificateover the data in the first tagging device associated with the club head.The first certificate may also be over data associated with the secondtagging device on the club shaft such as the second tagging device UID.Similarly, the second tagging device in the shaft would contain in itsmemory a second UID, a date stamp, optionally additional data (i.e.,keys, item data, etc.), and a second certificate over the data in thesecond tagging device associated with the shaft. The second certificatemay also be over data associated with the first tagging device in theclub head such as the first UID. The tightly coupled tagging device mayrequire that both the first tagging device on the club head and thesecond tagging device on the shaft must be communicated with in order toobtain all of the data necessary to validate the certificates stored inboth of the tagging devices affixed to the golf club.

In some embodiments, the owner of an item may register his/her ownershipin the authentication server. The owner may establish ownership throughan ownership change process. The initial owner may be established in anynumber of ways. For example, the owner may be established through aproduct registration process that includes a mail in post card.Alternatively, the owner may be established through the reading of atagging device, such as a QR code, that is contained within the productdocumentation that only an owner will be able to read. Yet anotherapproach is for the owner to be established at the point of sale in aretail establishment where a purchased product is registered to thepurchaser through the reading at the point of sale of the tagging deviceused for item authentication. An affinity card or credit card can beused to obtain all or a portion of the purchaser's personal informationneeded for product registration and ownership registration. The initialownership registration process can be identical to the initial productregistration process.

FIG. 13 illustrates a flow chart for an embodiment of a process 700 forregistering the ownership of an item from a presently unassigned ownerto a subsequent registered owner. This process may be used for theinitial ownership claim as well as any subsequent ownership claim wherethe previous ownership claim has been relinquished. The process 700 maybegin at step 702 with executing an authentication application. Theauthentication application may execute on the reading device 120 or thereading device may serve as an input device for communicating with theauthentication application running on an authentication system server.

At step 704, a user may login to the authentication system using theauthentication application. The login may verify that a user is aregistered user of the system. The login may request user data such as auser ID, a password, and any suitable additional identifying informationsuch as a device ID associated with the login request. The user data maybe sent to the authentication system for comparison and verificationwith existing information stored in the authentication system. Uponverifying the user data based on the information in the authenticationsystem, the authentication system may return an authentication to theauthentication application.

At step 706, the authentication application may receive an ownershipchange request. The ownership change request may comprise dataassociated with the item that is the subject of the ownership changerequest. The data may be input manually (e.g., a serial number), and/orthe reading device 120 may obtain the data from the tagging deviceassociated with the item. When the data is obtained from the taggingdevice, the data may comprise the UID of the tagging device, andoptionally any available item data, a digital signature, or the like.The data may then be sent to the authentication system for use inprocessing the ownership change request.

At step 707, the authentication application may optionally authenticatethe tagging device and/or item. While the item may be identified withoutauthenticating the tagging device, the optional authentication step mayensure that the user requesting the ownership change request actuallypossesses the item, thereby reducing the likelihood that the request isdirected to an item not in the user's possession. In order toauthenticate the tagging device, the reading device may obtain thetagging device data from the tagging device, for example by reading abar code, communicating with an RFID chip, or the like. The informationmay then be sent to the authentication server to authenticate thetagging device. When the tagging device comprises cryptographicfunctionality, the authentication application may mediate a one-way ormutual authentication between the authentication server and the taggingdevice, for example, using the mutual authentication processes describedherein.

At step 708, the system may determine if a current owner exists for theitem. For example, the authentication system may retrieve the ownershiprecords or ownership pedigree for the item to determine if the currentowner is unassigned or comprises an identifier for a registered user. Ifa current owner is identified for the item, the process may proceed tostep 710 and end. An optional message may then be sent to the currentowner to provide notification of the attempt to change the ownership ofthe item.

When the current ownership status of the item is determined to beunassigned, open, or otherwise available, the process 700 may proceed tostep 712 at which the system may determine if the request is valid. Theownership change request may be valid based on the registered userprofile, and optionally, authentication of the tagging device and/oritem. In an embodiment, the system may first verify that the registereduser has the appropriate rights to register as the owner of the item.For example, different user rights may be based on a membership level. Afree or lower level membership may only allow a user to register alimited number of items. The system may verify whether the user hasexceeded the available number of items prior to proceeding past step712. In some embodiments, the authorization may come in the form of atagging device, information, or other entity found in the productpackaging or received from the point of sales system. In someembodiments, the system may verify the authenticity of the taggingdevice before proceeding past step 712. For example, the system may onlyallow authenticated tagging devices to be registered. When the requestis determined by the system to be invalid, the process 700 may proceedto step 714 and end. An optional message may then be sent to theregistered user to provide notification of the reason for the requestbeing determined to be invalid.

When the request is determined to be valid at step 712, the process 700may proceed to step 716 in which the registered user may be associatedwith the item as the current owner. Establishing the user as the ownerof the item may be based on verifying that the item does not have acurrent owner, and in some embodiments, on the authentication of thetagging device associated with the item. The updated ownership statusmay be stored in the appropriate data structure in the authenticationsystem, and the owner pedigree or history may be updated to reflect thechange in the ownership status.

At step 718, a message may be sent to the registered user that they havebeen successfully registered as the current owner of the item.Additional notifications may also be sent including a notification to athird party to indicate that the item has been claimed.

When the process 700 is performed for the initial owner of an item, theownership claim process may serve, in some embodiments, as a productregistration. The registration process may utilize the user credentialsto provide the information on the user, and the authentication of thetagging device may serve to provide the necessary information on theitem being registered. By providing registration by registered users inthis manner, the system may be able to register an owner of the item forwarranty and other services with a single click or process. The abilityto perform the ownership registration as well as the productregistration may also encourage some users to register their items,which may provide valuable feedback to third parties on the status ofthe items they create.

In some embodiments, some or all of the information related to theownership claim process can be supplied to an ad server 191. In anembodiment, one or more ads may be supplied to a user, for example overthe reading device, in response to the ownership claim process. The adsmay be based on the subject of the ownership claim process. For example,an ad server may be configured to provide ads based on the item beingclaimed or any item related to the item being claimed. In someembodiments, the ads may be based on one or more characteristics (e.g.,demographics, location, etc.) of the user initiating the ownership claimprocess. Any of the types of ads or considerations for providing the adsdescribed herein can be used to supply one or more ads to a user.

An item may have multiple owners over its lifetime. For example, once anitem has been registered as being owned by a user, the user may continueto own and use the item. At a subsequent time, the owner may wish totransfer the ownership of the item to a second user. Ownership may betransferred to the second user by either being relinquished by the firstuser and subsequently claimed by the second user, or the ownership maybe directly transferred from the first user to the second user. In anembodiment, the current owner of an item may relinquish ownership of anitem by requesting that the authentication server set the current ownerto unassigned. This allows any subsequent owner to claim ownership as ifthe item were initially purchased.

FIG. 14 illustrates a flow chart for an embodiment of a process 800 forreleasing the ownership of an item from a presently assigned owner,which can be used to allow a subsequent owner to register as the ownerof an item. The process 800 may begin at step 802 with executing theauthentication application. As in the process 800, the authenticationapplication may execute on the reading device or the reading device mayserve as an input device for communicating with the authenticationapplication running on an authentication system server.

At step 804, a user may login to the authentication system using theauthentication application. The login may verify that a user is aregistered user of the system. The login may request user data such as auser ID, a password, and any suitable additional identifyinginformation. The user data may be sent to the authentication system forcomparison and verification with existing user information stored in theauthentication system. Upon verifying the user data based on theinformation in the authentication system, the authentication system mayreturn an authentication of the user to the authentication application.

At step 806, the authentication application may receive an ownershiprelease request. The ownership release request may comprise dataassociated with the item that may serve to identify the item. The datamay be input manually, for example, by entering a serial number,selecting the item from a list of items indicated as having the user asthe owner, and the like. In some embodiments, the reading device mayobtain the item data from the tagging device associated with the item.When the data is obtained from the tagging device, the data may comprisethe UID of the tagging device, and optionally any available item data, adigital signature, or the like. The data may then be sent to theauthentication system for use in processing the ownership releaserequest.

At step 807, the authentication application may optionally authenticatethe tagging device and/or item. For an ownership release, the item maygenerally not need to be authenticated. For example, when the item hasalready been transferred to a subsequent purchaser, the item may not beavailable for authentication. However, authentication of the item may beuseful in some instances in order to prevent a third party who may haveobtained the user's credentials from releasing the ownership of an item.In order to authenticate the tagging device, the reading device mayobtain the tagging device data from the tagging device for example byreading a bar code, communicating with an RFID tag, or the like. Theinformation may then be sent to the authentication server toauthenticate the tagging device. When the tagging device comprisescryptographic functionality, the authentication application may mediatea one-way authentication or mutual authentication between theauthentication server and the tagging device, for example, using themutual authentication processes described herein.

At step 808, the system may determine if a current owner exists for theitem and if the current owner is the user attempting to release theownership. For example, the authentication system may retrieve theownership records or ownership pedigree for the item to determine if thecurrent owner is unassigned or comprises an identifier for a registereduser. If a current owner is not identified for the item, the process mayproceed to step 810 and end. When an owner is identified, theauthentication system may verify that the identification of the owner inthe ownership records matches the user credentials for the userproviding the owner release request. If the current owner does not matchthe owner of the item in the ownership records, the process 800 mayproceed to step 810 and end. An optional message may then be sent to theuser to indicate that the ownership of the item is currently unassignedand/or that the ownership does not match the identity of the userattempting to release the ownership of the item.

When the current ownership status of the item is determined to beassigned and the ownership records indicate that the user is the ownerof the item, the process 800 may proceed to step 812 where the ownershipstatus of the item may be set to unassigned, null, or otherwise indicatethat the ownership is unclaimed.

At step 814, a message may be sent to the user to provide notificationthat the user is now listed as a past owner of the item and that theownership is currently unassigned. The updated ownership status may bestored in the appropriate data structure in the authentication system,and the owner pedigree or history may be updated to reflect the releaseof ownership of the item. In some embodiments, an optional message maybe sent to a third party such as the manufacturer of the item toindicate that the ownership of the item has been released.

In addition to releasing the ownership to allow a subsequent owner toclaim the ownership, the current owner may also transfer ownership toanother user. FIG. 15 illustrates a flow chart for an embodiment of aprocess 900 for transferring the ownership claim of an item from a firstowner to a second owner. The process 900 may begin at step 902 withexecuting an authentication application. The authentication applicationmay execute on the reading device 120 or the reading device may serve asan input device for communicating with the authentication applicationrunning on an authentication system server.

At step 904, a user may login to the authentication system using theauthentication application. The login may verify that a user is aregistered user of the system. The login may request user data such as auser ID, a password, and any suitable additional identifying informationsuch as a device ID associated with the login request. When theauthentication application receives the user credentials for the firstuser, the user credentials may be sent to the authentication system forcomparison and verification with existing information stored in theauthentication system. Upon verifying the first user credentials basedon the information in the authentication system, the authenticationsystem may return an authentication to the authentication applicationfor the first user.

At step 906, the authentication application may receive an ownershiptransfer request from the first user. The ownership transfer request maycomprise data associated with the item that may serve to identify theitem. The data may be input manually, for example, by entering a serialnumber, selecting the item from a list of items indicated as having theuser as the owner, and the like. In some embodiments, the reading devicemay obtain the item data from the tagging device associated with theitem. When the data is obtained from the tagging device, the data maycomprise the UID of the tagging device, and optionally any availableitem data, a digital signature, or the like. The data may then be sentto the authentication system for use in processing the ownershiptransfer request.

At step 907, the authentication application may optionally authenticatethe tagging device and/or item. For an ownership transfer, the item maygenerally not need to be authenticated. For example, when the item hasalready been transferred to a subsequent purchaser, the item may not beavailable for authentication by the first user. However, authenticationof the item may be useful in some instances. In order to authenticatethe tagging device, the reading device may obtain the tagging devicedata from the tagging device, for example by reading a bar code,communicating with an RFID tag, or the like. The information may then besent to the authentication server to authenticate the tagging device.When the tagging device comprises cryptographic functionality, theauthentication application may mediate a one-way authentication ormutual authentication between the authentication server and the taggingdevice, for example, using the mutual authentication processes describedherein.

At step 908, the system may determine if a current owner exists for theitem and if the current owner is the first user attempting to transferthe ownership. For example, the authentication system may retrieve theownership records or ownership pedigree for the item to determine if thecurrent owner is unassigned or comprises an identifier for a registereduser. If a current owner is not identified for the item, the process mayproceed to step 910 and end. When an owner is identified, theauthentication system may verify that the identification of the owner inthe ownership records matches the first user credentials for the userproviding the owner release request. If the current owner identified inthe records does not match the identification of the first user, theprocess 900 may proceed to step 910 and end. An optional message maythen be sent to the owner identified in the records or to a third partyto indicate that another user is attempting to transfer the ownership ofthe item.

When the current ownership status of the item is determined to beassigned to the first user, the process 900 may proceed to step 912where the system may verify that the second user is a registered andvalid user of the system. The information for the second user may beprovided by the first user and/or the second user. For example, bothusers may be logged into the system at the same time. Alternatively, thesecond user may be identified in the ownership transfer request itself.Once the second user information is provided to the authenticationapplication, the second user information may be sent to theauthentication system for confirmation that the second user is aregistered user of the system. If the system determines that the seconduser is not a registered user, the process 900 may proceed to step 914and end. An optional message may be sent to the first user and/or thesecond user indicating that the second user is not a registered user.

When the second user is verified as a registered user of the system, theprocess 900 may proceed to step 916 where the second owner is set as thenew owner of the item. In order to set the second user as the new ownerof the item, the ownership record of the first user may be modified toset the first user as a past owner of the item. The second user may thenbe set as the current owner of the item.

In some embodiments, transferring the ownership and setting the seconduser as the current owner of the item may be based on authenticating thetagging device associated with the item. The updated ownership status ofthe item may be stored in the appropriate data structure in theauthentication system, and the owner pedigree or history may be updatedto reflect the change in the ownership status. For example, the ownerpedigree may be modified to reflect that the first user is a previousowner of the item, and the second user is the current owner of the item.

At step 918, a message may be sent to the first user and/or the seconduser indicating that the ownership status has changed to a past ownerand that the second user has become the new owner of the item. In someembodiments, an optional message may be sent to a third party such asthe manufacturer of the item to indicate that the ownership of the itemhas been transferred from the first user to the second user. Thenotification may serve, in some embodiments, as a transfer of theproduct registration.

In some embodiments, some or all of the information related to theownership transfer process can be supplied to an ad server 191. In anembodiment, one or more ads may be supplied to a user, for example overthe reading device, in response to the ownership transfer process. Theads may be based on the subject of the ownership transfer process. Forexample, an ad server may be configured to provide ads based on the itembeing transferred or any item related to the item being transferred. Insome embodiments, the ads may be based on one or more characteristics(e.g., demographics, location, etc.) of the user initiating theownership transfer process and/or the user registering as the owner ofthe item. Any of the types of ads or considerations for providing theads described herein can be used to supply one or more ads to a user.The ownership change process may be part of a transaction involving theitem. The use of the tagging device may provide assurances that the itembeing transferred is authentic. However, some transactions may takeplace at a distance including, for example, on-line sales, catalogueorders, and the like. In these types of transactions, the purchaser maynot be able to verify the tagging device until the item is physicallyreceived, for example when the tagging device comprises an RFID tag, anNFC tag, a BLE device, and the like. Even when the tagging devicecomprises a bar code, QR code, or other visually readable taggingdevice, the seller may not provide access to the tagging device untilthe purchaser pays for the item. Further, a seller wanting tocounterfeit an item may simply supply a previously copied tagging devicesuch as a bar code and then send out multiple copies of the bar code tosubsequent purchasers. Some selling agencies have implemented escrowarrangements that allow a purchaser an inspection period prior to thepayment being sent to the seller. While an escrow arrangement may beuseful in limiting a purchaser's exposure to fraud, it may not provideany indication that the seller possesses the item at the time thepurchaser pays for the item.

In an embodiment, the system may allow for a secondary tagging device tobe created to verify the tagging device at a time selected by aregistered user. For example, a registered user may proceed toauthenticate the tagging device affixed to or coupled to an item, andtherefore the item, at a time after they have obtained the item. Theuser may then request a secondary tagging device, which may be referredto as an authentication tag. The authentication tag may be supplied bythe authentication server or by a third party or by any combinationthereof. The authentication tag may be in a form that can be supplied toa purchaser with or without the item, such as a QR code or an RFID tagor an application that may couple through a communications network tothe tagging device affixed to or coupled to the item. The authenticationtag may comprise a time stamp indicating that the tagging device wasauthenticated at or near the time of the creation of the authenticationtag. This may allow a seller to generate an authentication tag andprovide the authentication tag to a potential purchaser, who may use thetag to verify that the seller has possession of a verified taggingdevice at a recent time. The purchaser may be able to judge thecredibility of the seller based on the time stamp associated with theauthentication tag.

In an exemplary embodiment, the authentication tag may be used in a saleof an item associated with a tagging device that can occur at adistance. In this embodiment, a seller may post an item associated witha tagging device for sale on a web site. The tagging device may comprisean RFID tag, an NFC tag, a BLE device or some other tagging devicecommunicating through a wireless communication protocol. As a result ofthe tagging device being associated with a non-visual communicationprotocol, a prospective purchaser may not be able to verify theauthenticity of the item. In order to verify the authenticity of theitem, the seller who is in physical possession of the item and taggingdevice may perform a tagging device authentication as described above.The authentication process may verify the authenticity of the taggingdevice at the time the authentication process is performed.

As a registered user of the system, the seller may request anauthentication tag that can be sent to a purchaser, posted on thewebsite, or otherwise provided to the purchaser. When the systemauthenticates the tagging device associated with the item, the systemmay generate an authentication tag in response to the request from theuser, which may be based on the verification of the tagging deviceprovided by the authentication process. The system, for example theauthentication system, may generate the authentication tag comprising adigital signature having a time stamp indicative of the time, or theapproximate time, of the verification of the tagging device resultingfrom the authentication process. The authentication tag may comprise avisibly identifiable tagging device such as a bar code, QR code, or thelike. The authentication tag can then be sent to the prospectivepurchaser electronically (e.g., over the Internet), as a hard copy,using a fax machine, or using any other means. The use of a visiblyidentifiable tagging device may allow the tagging device to be easilyposted, sent, or otherwise transmitted to a purchaser who can read thetagging device. In some embodiments, the authentication tag may compriseany type of tagging device described herein.

When the purchaser receives or views the authentication tag, thepurchaser may perform a tagging device authentication process. Thepurchaser may be required to login to the system as a registered user inorder to perform the authentication tag verification process. The systemmay return a verification if the authentication process indicates thatthe authentication tag, and therefore the tagging device, is authentic.The verification may indicate the time at which the tagging deviceassociated with the item was last verified, item data, and/or anyadditional data associated with the tagging device authenticationprocess that resulted in the creation of the authentication tag (e.g.,the identity of the user creating the authentication tag, etc.). Thisverification may indicate to the purchaser that the seller hadpossession of the item at the time the authentication tag was created.Additional authentication tags can be created over time for subsequenttime periods to provide evidence of the authenticity of the item forvarious transactions.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a process 930 for creating anauthentication tag. The process 930 may begin at step 932 with the userrequesting the authentication tag providing login credentials to thesystem. The user may be a registered user and provide the registereduser information to the system. When the system receives the usercredentials, the system may verify the identity of the user and grantpermission to use the system. The user may login using an authenticationapplication executing on a reading device. In some embodiments, theauthentication application may be executing on a server associated withthe authentication system, and the user may login through a portalserving as a connection to the authentication system server.

At step 934, the tagging device data can be retrieved. In an embodiment,the reading device may obtain the tagging device data from the taggingdevice using any of the methods described herein. For example, thereading device may obtain an image of a bar code or QR code, or thereading device may initiate a communication sequence or protocol with acommunication enabled device such as an RFID tag, an NFC tag, or thelike. The tagging device data can include any of the information storedin the tagging device. In an embodiment, the tagging device dataobtained from the tagging device can include a first digital signatureand a first time stamp. The first digital signature may be the digitalsignature used to sign the tagging device data during the commissioningof the tagging device data, and the time stamp may be the time stampassociated with the first digital signature and the time ofcommissioning the tagging device.

At step 936, the tagging device may be authenticated and/or verified bythe authentication system. In order to carry out the authenticationprocess, the reading device may transmit the tagging device data to theauthentication system, which may carry out the authentication of thetagging device using any of the method described herein. Theauthentication system may then send back a message indicating whether ornot the tagging device is authenticated or verified by theauthentication system.

At step 938, a determination of the authentication of the tagging devicecan be made. When the tagging device is not authenticated or verified bythe authentication system, the process 930 may proceed to step 940 andend. A message may be sent to the user indicating that theauthentication process failed to authenticate the tagging device andthat a authentication tag could not be generated as a result of thefailed authentication of the tagging device.

When the tagging device is authenticated or verified, the process 930may proceed to step 942, where the user may request an authenticationtag based on the authentication of the tagging device. In an embodiment,the system may only accept requests for the creation of theauthentication tags from an owner of the item, and the authenticationsystem may retrieve the ownership information based on the usercredentials to verify the ownership prior to generating anauthentication tag. In some embodiments, the request for theauthentication tag may occur prior to step 934 and trigger thecommunication between the reading device and the tagging device. Whenthe reading device obtains the request from the user, the reading devicemay send the authentication tag request to the authentication system.

At step 944, the authentication system may generate tagging device datacomprising the information obtained from the tagging device associatedwith the item. The tagging device data, which may include the firstsignature and the first time stamp, may be signed by a second digitalsignature and a second time stamp. The second digital signature maycover all of the tagging device data, which may include the firstdigital signature and the first time stamp. The second digital signaturemay then be used to verify or authenticate the original tagging devicedata as well as identify the authentication tag as a later createdtagging device. In an embodiment, the second digital signature caninclude a cipher, hash function, or keyed hash function. The second timestamp may represent the time or approximately the time at which thetagging device was authenticated (e.g., the most recent time).

At step 946, the authentication system may generate the authenticationtag comprising the tagging device data, second digital signature, andsecond time stamp generated in step 944. The authentication tag may begenerated as a visual tagging device such as a bar code or QR code. Whenthe authentication tag comprises a visual tagging device, theauthentication tag may be sent to the reading device and/or the user inan electronic form. The authentication tag may then be presented on adisplay, printed, or otherwise provided to a third party. In someembodiments, the authentication tag may be commissioned as an RFID tag,an NFC tag, a BLE device, or the like. The authentication tag could thenbe provided directly to a third party for verification of the item.

In some embodiments, the authentication system may follow a similarprocedure to generate a certificate of authenticity rather than a secondauthentication tag. In this embodiment, the owner of an item maygenerate a certificate for that item indicating that the item wasauthenticated by the owner on a specific date. For example, the ownermay log into the authentication system (e.g., using an authenticationapplication) as the owner, select the generate certificate function,enter information that the owner wants in the certificate such as thetag identifier, allow the system to authenticate the tag using theauthentication procedure, and then generates the certificate. Thisprocess may follow the same procedures described with respect to FIG.16.

The resulting certificate of authenticity can be communicated to theowner and/or a third party designated by the owner through any availablecommunication routes such as through email, text message, physical mail,or the like. An exemplary certificate of authenticity 947 is shown inFIG. 17. As illustrated, the certificate of authenticity 947 may includevarious item data (e.g., a product ID, vendor ID, and the like),ownership data, the authentication time, a tagging device ID associatedwith the item and any other details used in the authentication process.As also shown, the second authentication tag can be included with thecertificate of authenticity. The second authentication tag may allow thecertificate of authenticity to be verified.

FIG. 18 depicts the mobile device 950, which is operable forimplementing aspects of the present disclosure, but the presentdisclosure should not be limited to these implementations. The mobiledevice 950 may be used as the reading device described with respect toFIG. 1 and/or the mobile device described with respect to FIG. 7 above.Though illustrated as a mobile phone, the mobile device 950 may takevarious forms including a wireless handset, a pager, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a gaming device, a dedicated reading device, or a mediaplayer. The mobile device 950 includes a display 951 and atouch-sensitive surface and/or keys 952 for input by a user. The mobiledevice 950 may present options for the user to select, controls for theuser to actuate, and/or cursors or other indicators for the user todirect. The mobile device 950 may further accept data entry from theuser, including numbers to dial or various parameter values forconfiguring the operation of the handset. The mobile device 950 mayfurther execute one or more software or firmware applications inresponse to user commands (e.g., the authentication application). Theseapplications may configure the mobile device 950 to perform variouscustomized functions in response to user interaction. Additionally, themobile device 950 may be programmed and/or configured over-the-air, forexample from a wireless base station, a wireless access point, or a peermobile device 950. The mobile device 950 may execute a web browserapplication which enables the display 951 to show a web page. The webpage may be obtained via wireless communications with a base transceiverstation, a wireless network access node, a peer mobile device 950 or anyother wireless communication network or system.

FIG. 19 shows a block diagram of the mobile device 950. While a varietyof known components of handsets are depicted, in an embodiment a subsetof the listed components and/or additional components not listed may beincluded in the mobile device 950. The mobile device 950 includes adigital signal processor (DSP) 953 or a processor, and a memory 954. Asshown, the mobile device 950 may further include an antenna and frontend unit 955, a radio frequency (RF) transceiver 956, a basebandprocessing unit 957, a microphone 958, an earpiece speaker 959, aheadset port 960, an input/output interface 961, a removable memory card962, a universal serial bus (USB) port 963, an infrared port 964, avibrator 965, a keypad 966, a touch screen liquid crystal display (LCD)with a touch sensitive surface 967, a touch screen/LCD controller 968, acamera 969, a camera controller 970, and a global positioning system(GPS) receiver 971. In an embodiment, the mobile device 950 may includeanother kind of display that does not provide a touch sensitive screen.In an embodiment, the DSP 953 may communicate directly with the memory954 without passing through the input/output interface 961.Additionally, in an embodiment, the mobile device 950 may comprise otherperipheral devices that provide other functionality.

The DSP 953 or some other form of controller or central processing unitoperates to control the various components of the mobile device 950 inaccordance with embedded software or firmware stored in memory 954 orstored in memory contained within the DSP 953 itself. In addition to theembedded software or firmware, the DSP 953 may execute otherapplications stored in the memory 954 or made available via informationcarrier media such as portable data storage media like the removablememory card 962 or via wired or wireless network communications. Theapplication software may comprise a compiled set of machine-readableinstructions that configure the DSP 953 to provide the desiredfunctionality, or the application software may be high-level softwareinstructions to be processed by an interpreter or compiler to indirectlyconfigure the DSP 953.

The DSP 953 may communicate with a wireless network via the analogbaseband processing unit 957. In some embodiments, the communication mayprovide Internet connectivity, enabling a user to gain access to contenton the Internet and to send and receive e-mail or text messages. Theinput/output interface 961 interconnects the DSP 953 and variousmemories and interfaces. The memory 954 and the removable memory card962 may provide software and data to configure the operation of the DSP953. Among the interfaces may be the USB port 963 and the infrared port964. The USB port 963 may enable the mobile device 950 to function as aperipheral device to exchange information with a personal computer orother computer system. The infrared port 964 and other optional portssuch as a Bluetooth interface or an IEEE 802.11 compliant wirelessinterface may enable the mobile device 950 to communicate wirelesslywith other nearby handsets and/or wireless base stations in addition totagging devices. Additional ports may also enable communication with atagging device such as an RFID tag, an NFC tag, or the like.

The keypad 966 couples to the DSP 953 via the input/output interface 961to provide one mechanism for the user to make selections, enterinformation, and otherwise provide input to the mobile device 950.Another input mechanism may be the touch screen LCD 967, which may alsodisplay text and/or graphics to the user. The touch screen LCDcontroller 968 couples the DSP 953 to the touch screen LCD 967. The GPSreceiver 971 is coupled to the DSP 953 to decode global positioningsystem signals, thereby enabling the mobile device 950 to determine itsposition.

FIG. 20A illustrates a software environment 972 that may be implementedby the DSP 953. The DSP 953 may execute operating system software 973 orlow-level hardware interface and management software that provides aplatform from which the rest of the software operates. The operatingsystem software 973 may provide a variety of drivers for the handsethardware with standardized interfaces that are accessible to applicationsoftware. The operating system software 973 may be coupled to andinteract with application management services (AMS) 974 that transfercontrol between applications running on the mobile device 950. Alsoshown in FIG. 20A are a web browser application 975, a media playerapplication 976, and JAVA applets 977. The web browser application 975may be executed by the mobile device 950 to browse content and/or theInternet, for example when the mobile device 950 is coupled to a networkvia a wireless link. The web browser application 975 may permit a userto enter information into forms and select links to retrieve and viewweb pages. The media player application 976 may be executed by themobile device 950 to play audio or audiovisual media. The JAVA applets977 may be executed by the mobile device 950 to provide a variety offunctionality including games, utilities, and other functionality.

FIG. 20B illustrates an alternative software environment 978 that may beimplemented by the DSP 953. The DSP 953 executes operating system kernel(OS kernel) 982 and an execution runtime 983. The DSP 953 executesapplications 979 that may execute in the execution runtime 983 and mayrely upon services provided by the application framework 980.Applications 979 and the application framework 980 may rely uponfunctionality provided via the libraries 981.

FIG. 21 illustrates a computer system 990 suitable for implementing oneor more embodiments disclosed herein. For example, any of the systemsdescribed with respect to FIG. 1 may be implemented as one or moreservers and/or computers that are the same as or similar to the computersystem 990. The computer system 990 includes a processor 991 (which maybe referred to as a central processor unit or CPU) that is incommunication with memory devices including secondary storage 992, readonly memory (“ROM”) 993, random access memory (“RAM”) 994, input/output(“I/O”) devices 995, and network connectivity devices 996. The processor991 may be implemented as one or more CPU chips or one more chips thattogether provide the functionality of the processor.

It is understood that by programming and/or loading executableinstructions onto the computer system 990, at least one of the CPU 991,the RAM 994, and the ROM 993 are changed, transforming the computersystem 990 in part into a particular machine or apparatus having thenovel functionality taught by the present disclosure. It is fundamentalto the electrical engineering and software engineering arts thatfunctionality that can be implemented by loading executable softwareinto a computer can be converted to a hardware implementation bywell-known design rules. Decisions between implementing a concept insoftware versus hardware typically hinge on considerations of stabilityof the design and numbers of units to be produced rather than any issuesinvolved in translating from the software domain to the hardware domain.Generally, a design that is still subject to frequent change may bepreferred to be implemented in software, because re-spinning a hardwareimplementation is more expensive than re-spinning a software design.Generally, a design that is stable that will be produced in large volumemay be preferred to be implemented in hardware, for example in anapplication specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), because for largeproduction runs the hardware implementation may be less expensive thanthe software implementation. Often a design may be developed and testedin a software form and later transformed, by well-known design rules, toan equivalent hardware implementation in an application specificintegrated circuit that hardwires the instructions of the software. Inthe same manner as a machine controlled by a new ASIC is a particularmachine or apparatus, likewise a computer that has been programmedand/or loaded with executable instructions may be viewed as a particularmachine or apparatus.

The secondary storage 992 is typically comprised of one or more diskdrives or tape drives and is used for non-volatile storage of data andas an over-flow data storage device if RAM 994 is not large enough tohold all working data. Secondary storage 992 may be used to storeprograms which are loaded into RAM 994 when such programs are selectedfor execution. The ROM 993 is used to store instructions and perhapsdata which are read during program execution. ROM 993 is a non-volatilememory device which typically has a small memory capacity relative tothe larger memory capacity of secondary storage 992. The RAM 994 is usedto store volatile data and perhaps to store instructions. Access to bothROM 993 and RAM 994 is typically faster than to secondary storage 992.The secondary storage 992, the RAM 994, and/or the ROM 993 may bereferred to in some contexts as computer readable storage media and/ornon-transitory computer readable media.

I/O devices 995 may include printers, video monitors, liquid crystaldisplays (“LCDs”), touch screen displays, keyboards, keypads, switches,dials, mice, track balls, voice recognizers, card readers, paper tapereaders, or other well-known input devices.

The network connectivity devices 996 may take the form of modems, modembanks, Ethernet cards, USB interface cards, serial interfaces, tokenring cards, fiber distributed data interface (“FDDI”) cards, wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) cards, radio transceiver cards such as CDMA,GSM, LTE, WiMAX, and/or other air interface protocol radio transceivercards, and other well-known network devices. These network connectivitydevices 996 may enable the processor 991 to communicate with theInternet or one or more intranets. With such a network connection, it iscontemplated that the processor 991 might receive information from thenetwork, or might output information to the network in the course ofperforming the above-described method steps. Such information, which isoften represented as a sequence of instructions to be executed usingprocessor 991, may be received from and outputted to the network, forexample, in the form of a computer data signal embodied in a carrierwave.

Such information, which may include data or instructions to be executedusing processor 991 for example, may be received from and outputted tothe network, for example, in the form of a computer data baseband signalor signal embodied in a carrier wave. The baseband signal or signalembedded in the carrier wave, or other types of signals currently usedor hereafter developed, may be generated according to several methodswell known to one skilled in the art. The baseband signal and/or signalembedded in the carrier wave may be referred to in some contexts as atransitory signal.

The processor 991 executes instructions, codes, computer programs,scripts which it accesses from hard disk, floppy disk, optical disk(these various disk based systems may all be considered secondarystorage 992), ROM 993, RAM 994, or the network connectivity devices 996.While only one processor 991 is shown, multiple processors may bepresent. Thus, while instructions may be discussed as executed by aprocessor, the instructions may be executed simultaneously, serially, orotherwise executed by one or multiple processors. Instructions, codes,computer programs, scripts, and/or data that may be accessed from thesecondary storage 992, for example, hard drives, floppy disks, opticaldisks, and/or other device, the ROM 993, and/or the RAM 994 may bereferred to in some contexts as non-transitory instructions and/ornon-transitory information.

In an embodiment, the computer system 990 may comprise two or morecomputers in communication with each other that collaborate to perform atask. For example, but not by way of limitation, an application may bepartitioned in such a way as to permit concurrent and/or parallelprocessing of the instructions of the application. Alternatively, thedata processed by the application may be partitioned in such a way as topermit concurrent and/or parallel processing of different portions of adata set by the two or more computers. In an embodiment, virtualizationsoftware may be employed by the computer system 990 to provide thefunctionality of a number of servers that is not directly bound to thenumber of computers in the computer system 990. For example,virtualization software may provide twenty virtual servers on fourphysical computers. In an embodiment, the functionality disclosed abovemay be provided by executing the application and/or applications in acloud computing environment. Cloud computing may comprise providingcomputing services via a network connection using dynamically scalablecomputing resources. Cloud computing may be supported, at least in part,by virtualization software. A cloud computing environment may beestablished by an enterprise and/or may be hired on an as-needed basisfrom a third party provider. Some cloud computing environments maycomprise cloud computing resources owned and operated by the enterpriseas well as cloud computing resources hired and/or leased from a thirdparty provider.

In an embodiment, some or all of the functionality disclosed above maybe provided as a computer program product. The computer program productmay comprise one or more computer readable storage medium havingcomputer usable program code embodied therein to implement thefunctionality disclosed above. The computer program product may comprisedata structures, executable instructions, and other computer usableprogram code. The computer program product may be embodied in removablecomputer storage media and/or non-removable computer storage media. Theremovable computer readable storage medium may comprise, withoutlimitation, a paper tape, a magnetic tape, magnetic disk, an opticaldisk, a solid state memory chip, for example analog magnetic tape,compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM) disks, floppy disks, jump drives,digital cards, multimedia cards, and others. The computer programproduct may be suitable for loading, by the computer system 990, atleast portions of the contents of the computer program product to thesecondary storage 992, to the ROM 993, to the RAM 994, and/or to othernon-volatile memory and volatile memory of the computer system 990. Theprocessor 991 may process the executable instructions and/or datastructures in part by directly accessing the computer program product,for example by reading from a CD-ROM disk inserted into a disk driveperipheral of the computer system 990. Alternatively, the processor 991may process the executable instructions and/or data structures byremotely accessing the computer program product, for example bydownloading the executable instructions and/or data structures from aremote server through the network connectivity devices 996. The computerprogram product may comprise instructions that promote the loadingand/or copying of data, data structures, files, and/or executableinstructions to the secondary storage 992, to the ROM 993, to the RAM994, and/or to other non-volatile memory and volatile memory of thecomputer system 990.

In some contexts, the secondary storage 992, the ROM 993, and the RAM994 may be referred to as a non-transitory computer readable medium or acomputer readable storage media. A dynamic RAM embodiment of the RAM994, likewise, may be referred to as a non-transitory computer readablemedium in that while the dynamic RAM receives electrical power and isoperated in accordance with its design, for example during a period oftime during which the computer system 990 is turned on and operational,the dynamic RAM stores information that is written to it. Similarly, theprocessor 991 may comprise an internal RAM, an internal ROM, a cachememory, and/or other internal non-transitory storage blocks, sections,or components that may be referred to in some contexts as non-transitorycomputer readable media or computer readable storage media.

ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURE

Accordingly, the scope of protection is not limited by the descriptionset out above but is only limited by the claims which follow, that scopeincluding all equivalents of the subject matter of the claims. Each andevery claim is incorporated into the specification as an embodiment ofthe present invention. Thus, the claims are a further description andare an addition to the detailed description of the present invention.The disclosures of all patents, patent applications, and publicationscited herein are hereby incorporated by reference.

A first embodiment, which is a golf club comprising:

-   -   a club head, wherein the club head comprises a hosel;    -   a shaft disposed within the hosel;    -   a ferrule disposed about the shaft at a coupling between the        shaft and the hosel; and    -   a tagging device coupled to the ferrule.

A second embodiment, which is the golf club of claim 1, wherein thetagging device is at least partially disposed within the ferrule.

A third embodiment, which is the golf club of any one of the first orthe second embodiment, wherein the tagging device comprises a wirelesscommunication device.

A fourth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the first throughthe third embodiments, wherein the tagging device comprises an RFID tag,a NFC device, a Bluetooth device, or a WiFi enabled device.

A fifth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the first throughthe fourth embodiments, wherein the ferrule comprises a cavity ordepression, and wherein the tagging device is disposed within the cavityor depression.

A sixth embodiment, which is the golf club of the fifth embodiment,further comprising a filler material, and wherein the filler material isconfigured to retain the tagging device within the cavity.

A seventh embodiment, which is the golf club of the sixth embodiment,wherein the filler material is transparent or semi-opaque.

An eighth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the first throughthe seventh embodiments, further comprising a ferrite shielding materialdisposed between the tagging device and the shaft.

A ninth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the first throughthe eighth embodiments, wherein the shaft is formed form a metallicmaterial.

A tenth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the first throughthe ninth embodiment, wherein the ferrule is formed form a polymericmaterial.

An eleventh embodiment, which is a system for authenticating andmanaging the ownership of a golf club comprising:

-   -   a golf club, wherein the golf club comprises a ferrule and a        tagging device coupled to the ferrule, wherein the tagging        device comprises tagging device data.    -   an item information system receiving the tagging device data and        associated item data and storing the tagging device data and the        item data;    -   an owner registration and transfer system receiving owner        registration data and ownership change requests and storing the        ownership history; and    -   an authentication system receiving authentication requests and        generating a response based upon the information stored in the        system or a connected system.

A twelfth embodiment, which is the system of the eleventh embodiment,wherein the tagging device comprises a linear bar code or a QR code,wherein the linear bar code or the QR code is visible from an exteriorof the ferrule.

A thirteenth embodiment, which is the system of the eleventh or thetwelfth embodiment, wherein the tagging device comprises an RFID device.

A fourteenth embodiment, which is the system of the thirteenthembodiment, wherein the RFID device is embedded within the ferrule.

A fifteenth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the fourteenth embodiments, wherein the tagging device comprisesan NFC compatible device.

A sixteenth embodiment, which is the system of the fifteenth embodiment,wherein the NFC device is embedded within the ferrule.

A seventeenth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the sixteenth embodiments, wherein the tagging device comprisesa Bluetooth enabled device.

An eighteenth embodiment, which is the system of the seventeenthembodiment, wherein the Bluetooth device is embedded within the ferrule.

A nineteenth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the eighteenth embodiments, wherein the tagging device comprisesan optically readable pattern.

A twentieth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the nineteenth embodiments, wherein the tagging device comprisesa WiFi enabled device.

A twenty-first embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twentieth embodiments, wherein the item information systemfurther receives data and information related to the golf club andstores the information for use by one or more of the item informationsystem, the owner registration and transfer system, or theauthentication system.

A twenty-second embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twenty-first embodiments, wherein the data and informationrelated to the golf club comprises information from an authenticationrequest, tagging device read event data, authentication request eventdata, item information system event data, owner registration andtransfer event data, authentication system event data, ownership eventdata, updated owner data, product registration data, and manufacturerevent data.

A twenty-third embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twenty-second embodiments, wherein the owner registrationand transfer system further provides product registration information toan item manufacturer or item registration service.

A twenty-fourth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twenty-third embodiments, further comprising a keymanagement system, wherein the authentication system communicates withthe key management system.

A twenty-fifth embodiment, which is the system of the twenty-fourthembodiment, wherein the key management system comprises a hardwaresecurity module (HSM), and wherein the HSM stores one or moreauthentication keys.

A twenty-sixth embodiment, which is the system of the twenty-fourthembodiment, wherein the authentication system is configured to generatea response to the authentication request by accessing at least oneauthentication key in the key management system.

A twenty-seventh embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twenty-sixth embodiments, wherein the owner registration andtransfer system further comprises:

-   -   an owner registration system receiving one or more requests,        owner data, and owner authentication to establish the current        owner of the item;    -   an owner release system receiving one or more requests, current        owner data, and current owner authentication to remove the        current owner of the item;    -   an owner transfer system receiving one or more requests, current        owner data, second owner data, current owner authentication, and        second owner authentication to establish the second owner as the        current owner of the item, and    -   an owner history system that records the requests and activities        regarding the ownership of the item.

A twenty-eighth embodiment, which is the system of the twenty-seventhembodiment, further comprising a notification system generating anotification message to one or more users involved in an ownershiprequest.

A twenty-ninth embodiment, which is the system of the twenty-seventhembodiment, further comprising a notification system generating anotification message to one or more entities after a change in thecurrent ownership of an item.

A thirtieth embodiment, which is the system of any of the elevenththrough the twenty-ninth embodiments, further comprising anadvertisement server, wherein at least one of the item informationsystem, the owner registration and transfer system, or theauthentication system are further configured to supply information tothe advertisement server, and wherein at least one of the iteminformation system, the owner registration and transfer system, or theauthentication system is configured to receive an advertisement or acoupon from the ad server.

A thirty-first embodiment, which is a method for authenticating an itemcomprising:

-   -   storing authentication information, tagging device data, and        item data associated with a tagging device in a server, wherein        the tagging device is coupled to a ferrule of a golf club;    -   receiving tagging device data and authentication information        from the tagging device coupled to the ferrule;    -   receiving the tagging device data and the authentication        information from the server;    -   correlating the tagging device data and the authentication        information in the server with the tagging device data and the        authentication information from the tagging device; and    -   generating confirmation data when the tagging device data and        authentication information are correlated.

A thirty-second embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-firstembodiment, further comprising commissioning the tagging device, andinserting the authentication information, the tagging device data, andthe item data into the tagging device.

A thirty-third embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-first orthe thirty-second embodiment, further comprising generating one or morenotification messages indicating at least the authentication request andconfirmation data and sending the one or more messages to one or moreentities.

A thirty-fourth embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-thirdembodiment, wherein one of the entities is the registered owner of thegolf club.

A thirty-fifth embodiment, which is the method of any of thethirty-first through the thirty-fourth embodiments, further comprisingreceiving the item data from server.

A thirty-sixth embodiment, which is the method of any of thethirty-first through the thirty-fifth embodiments, wherein receiving thetagging device data and the authentication information from a taggingdevice and from the server is performed by a mobile tag reading device.

A thirty-seventh embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-sixthembodiment, wherein the mobile tag reading device is a mobile phone.

A thirty-eighth embodiment, which is the method of any of thethirty-first through the thirty-seventh embodiments, further comprisingreceiving an ad from an ad server in response to the correlating.

A thirty-ninth embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-eighthembodiment, wherein the ad is based on a type of the item.

A fortieth embodiment, which is the method of the thirty-eighth or thethirty-ninth embodiment, wherein the ad is based on demographic dataassociated with an owner of the item.

A forty-first embodiment, which is the method of any of the thirty-firstthrough the fortieth embodiments, further comprising generating acertificate of authenticity when the tagging device data andauthentication information are correlated.

A forty-second embodiment, which is the method of any of thethirty-first through the forty-first embodiments, further comprisingreceiving a coupon from a coupon server in response to the correlating.

A forty-third embodiment, which is the method of the forty-secondembodiment, wherein the coupon is based on a type of the item,demographic data associated with one or more owners of the item, a usagehistory of a reading device, a location of the reading device, or anycombination thereof.

A forty-fourth embodiment, which is a golf club comprising:

-   -   a club head, wherein the club head comprises a hosel;    -   a shaft disposed within the hosel; and    -   a tagging device coupled to the hosel.

A forty-fifth embodiment, which is the golf club of the forty-fourthembodiment, wherein the tagging device is at least partially disposedwithin the hosel.

A forty-sixth embodiment, which is the golf club of the forty-fourth orthe forty-fifth embodiment, wherein the tagging device comprises awireless communication device.

A forty-seventh embodiment, which is the golf club of any of theforty-fourth through the forty-sixth embodiments, wherein the taggingdevice comprises an RFID tag, a NFC device, a Bluetooth device, or aWiFi enabled device.

A forty-eighth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of theforty-fourth through the forty-seventh embodiments, wherein the hoselcomprises a cavity or depression, and wherein the tagging device isdisposed within the cavity or depression.

A forty-ninth embodiment, which is the golf club of the forty-eighthembodiment, further comprising a filler material, and wherein the fillermaterial is configured to retain the tagging device within the cavity.

A fiftieth embodiment, which is the golf club of any of the forty-fourththrough the forty-ninth embodiments, further comprising a ferriteshielding material disposed adjacent to the tagging device.

A fifty-first embodiment, which is the golf club of any of theforty-fourth through the fiftieth embodiments, further comprising aferrule disposed about the shaft at a coupling between the shaft and thehosel.

A fifty-second embodiment, which is the golf club of the fifty-firstembodiment, further comprising a second tagging device coupled to theferrule.

While several embodiments have been provided in the present disclosure,it should be understood that the disclosed systems and methods may beembodied in many other specific forms without departing from the spiritor scope of the present disclosure. The present examples are to beconsidered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the intention is notto be limited to the details given herein. For example, the variouselements or components may be combined or integrated in another systemor certain features may be omitted or not implemented.

Also, techniques, systems, subsystems, and methods described andillustrated in the various embodiments as discrete or separate may becombined or integrated with other systems, modules, techniques, ormethods without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.Other items shown or discussed as directly coupled or communicating witheach other may be indirectly coupled or communicating through someinterface, device, or intermediate component, whether electrically,mechanically, or otherwise. Other examples of changes, substitutions,and alterations are ascertainable by one skilled in the art and could bemade without departing from the spirit and scope disclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A golf club comprising: a club head, wherein theclub head comprises a hosel; a shaft disposed within the hosel; aferrule disposed about the shaft at a coupling between the shaft and thehosel; and a tagging device coupled to the ferrule or the hosel.
 2. Thegolf club of claim 1, wherein the tagging device is at least partiallydisposed within the ferrule or the hosel.
 3. The golf club of claim 1,wherein the tagging device comprises a wireless communication device. 4.The golf club of claim 1, wherein the tagging device comprises an RFIDtag, a NFC device, a Bluetooth device, or a WiFi enabled device.
 5. Thegolf club of claim 1, wherein the ferrule or hosel comprises a cavity ordepression, and wherein the tagging device is disposed within the cavityor depression.
 6. The golf club of claim 5, further comprising a fillermaterial, and wherein the filler material is configured to retain thetagging device within the cavity.
 7. The golf club of claim 6, whereinthe filler material is transparent or semi-opaque.
 8. The golf club ofclaim 1, further comprising a ferrite shielding material disposedbetween the tagging device and the shaft.
 9. A system for authenticatingand managing the ownership of a golf club comprising: a golf club,wherein the golf club comprises a ferrule and a tagging device coupledto the ferrule, wherein the tagging device comprises tagging devicedata. an item information system receiving the tagging device data andassociated item data and storing the tagging device data and the itemdata; an owner registration and transfer system receiving ownerregistration data and ownership change requests and storing theownership history; and an authentication system receiving authenticationrequests and generating a response based upon the information stored inthe system or a connected system.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein theitem information system further receives data and information related tothe golf club and stores the information for use by one or more of theitem information system, the owner registration and transfer system, orthe authentication system.
 11. The system of claim 9, wherein the dataand information related to the golf club comprises information from anauthentication request, tagging device read event data, authenticationrequest event data, item information system event data, ownerregistration and transfer event data, authentication system event data,ownership event data, updated owner data, product registration data, andmanufacturer event data.
 12. The system of claim 9, wherein the ownerregistration and transfer system further provides product registrationinformation to an item manufacturer or item registration service. 13.The system of claim 9, further comprising a key management system,wherein the authentication system communicates with the key managementsystem.
 14. The system of claim 9, wherein the owner registration andtransfer system further comprises: an owner registration systemreceiving one or more requests, owner data, and owner authentication toestablish the current owner of the item; an owner release systemreceiving one or more requests, current owner data, and current ownerauthentication to remove the current owner of the item; an ownertransfer system receiving one or more requests, current owner data,second owner data, current owner authentication, and second ownerauthentication to establish the second owner as the current owner of theitem, and an owner history system that records the requests andactivities regarding the ownership of the item.
 15. The system of claim9, further comprising an advertisement server, wherein at least one ofthe item information system, the owner registration and transfer system,or the authentication system are further configured to supplyinformation to the advertisement server, and wherein at least one of theitem information system, the owner registration and transfer system, orthe authentication system is configured to receive an advertisement or acoupon from the ad server.
 16. A method for authenticating an itemcomprising: storing authentication information, tagging device data, anditem data associated with a tagging device in a server, wherein thetagging device is coupled to a ferrule of a golf club; receiving taggingdevice data and authentication information from the tagging devicecoupled to the ferrule; receiving the tagging device data and theauthentication information from the server; correlating the taggingdevice data and the authentication information in the server with thetagging device data and the authentication information from the taggingdevice; and generating confirmation data when the tagging device dataand authentication information are correlated.
 17. The method of claim16, further comprising commissioning the tagging device, and insertingthe authentication information, the tagging device data, and the itemdata into the tagging device.
 18. The method of claim 16, furthercomprising generating one or more notification messages indicating atleast the authentication request and confirmation data and sending theone or more messages to one or more entities.
 19. The method of claim16, further comprising receiving an ad from an ad server in response tothe correlating.
 20. The method of claim 16, further comprisinggenerating a certificate of authenticity when the tagging device dataand authentication information are correlated.